Shealy Stories

Part 2--The semi-well-oiled machine...our daily schedule

2012-02-10T10:25:00.000-05:00

I am a firm believer in schedules. I think kids/infants thrive on schedules because they always know what to expect. I think it helps with behavior, as well. Watch out for "over-loaded" schedules, though! I'll talk more about that later in this post.

This is a fairly typical day in the Shealy household:
I wake Roger up at 6:20, so he can shower and get ready. (he doesn't hear the alarm!)
I wake the kids up at 6:45 and everyone comes down for breakfast. (This is the only meal we get with daddy)
We eat and have family devotions.
Roger leaves for work and our day "officially" begins.
Everyone is excused from the table and "jobs" begin. (Look back a few posts to see what jobs everyone has.)
I change diapers and get the little ones ready for the day. (Bethany isn't always up at 6:45, so she may be eating at this time)
While the big kids do their jobs I check email and facebook.
I continue checking in with everyone during this time to make sure they are getting everything done.
By 9:00, I bring everyone downstairs.
The youngest 3 watch a Leap Frog video (This is an excellent learning tool!) Sometimes Bethany watches from her exersaucer, or I use the baby gate to gate her into the school room with me and she plays with toys.
While the younger kids watch the video I start school with the older 2. We begin with History. I read whatever I need to read to them that day and they get started on their assignment.
When the video is over and Lauren and Franklin are done with History we do "Circle Time." This is a great time for our family. Everyone gathers in a circle on the floor in the living room. We go over our schedule for the day, ABC's, count, months, date, weeks, sing, etc. It.is.fun!
Then it is snack time! We grab a healthy snack and then we are ready to move on with energy!
After snacks Lauren and Franklin take turns doing math on the computer and I begin kindergarten with Ari and Miles. Ian likes to sit at the table with us and color/"do school." I often take Ari and Miles one at a time...depending on what we are doing that day.
When kindergarten is done, and Lauren and Franklin have completed their math ,I bring Lauren and Franklin back to the school room to finish up with Science. (We don't do science every day.) Ari and Miles are sent to finish whatever jobs they have not completed, or they get to play if they are already done.

Bethany is back and forth between one and two naps a day, so she either takes a nap at 10 and 2:30, or she takes a nap at 12:30.
Between kids doing school I do loads of laundry, or clean a toilet, or vacuum, or dust, etc.
Typically, we finish all assignments by noon.
We eat around 12:00.
If Bethany didn't get a morning nap then she and Ian go down for a nap around 12:30-1:00. (Ian doesn't take a nap every day, but he often still needs some rest).
While the little ones are resting I work out (Ian works out with me if he isn't sleeping! I love it! I often make all of the kids do Zumba with me!), check email and facebook, and get my shower.
The four older kids have a "down time" in the afternoon. Lauren and Franklin have to read at least one chapter of whatever book they are reading, Lauren practices piano, and Franklin practices guitar. Everyone gets the chance to play outside if it is nice, go for a hike with snacks, play Wii if the weather isn't nice, or possibly even watch a movie. This is their chance to play games on the computer, too.
I start on dinner by 5:00, we eat, clean up, and play until daddy gets home. The three youngest go to bed at 7:30, and the three oldest are typically in bed at 8:30, and then Roger and I get time together.

This schedule is working really well for us! I am able to keep the house clean, play with the kids, and get school done each day. Although I am a firm believer in schedules...I have become a much more firm believer in FLEXIBILITY! Flexibility is necessary! We may have doctors appointments, or someone may not feel well, or I may have an irritable teething baby that prevents us from keeping an exact schedule. I also have to be flexible when determining if Bethany needs one or two naps per day, which changes our schedule, or stopping in the middle of something to change a diaper, or clean up a spill, or kiss a booboo, or hug hurt feelings, or break up a squabble. It is so important to keep a schedule, but to learn to go with the flow! Your day will be much more stress-free if you can grasp this concept!

As I mentioned in the first paragraph...WATCH OUT FOR OVER-LOADED SCHEDULES! Pick and choose very carefully what extracurricular activities you will engage. I have been told over and over and over, "I don't get it! How do you do it?! You never seem stressed out!" I certainly have my "stressed-out" moments, but I think I am not stressed most of the time because I do not overschedule. At this time, we really don't have any extracurricular activities. No baseball. No ballet. No art. No music. No clubs. None of those things are bad!If it has no eternal perspective...it may be time to eliminate it from life! Pick and choose wisely!

And that is our semi-well-oiled machine of a schedule...at least at the moment...

When was the last time you cleaned out your medicine cabinet?

2012-02-08T10:23:00.000-05:00

Here is a friendly reminder...
Clean out your medicine cabinet!!! When was the last time you did that?

Here is a story to motivate you to keep it cleaned out:
Several years ago a friend had a cold. He used nose spray to help open up his nose. He didn't even think to check the expiration date on the bottle.

He almost died.
From using nose spray that had expired.

The spray had grown bacteria inside. Once he sprayed it in his nose the bacteria went to his brain causing a severe infection. He was in intensive care for several days. He nearly died...from expired medication!

And that is why I am adamant about keeping my medicine cabinet cleaned out and always checking the expiration date before I take, or give medications! So, what are you waiting for???!!!! Get to work!!! It could save your life!

Preparing for Ligon

2012-02-07T10:14:00.000-05:00

My due date is February 27th. I have never gone into labor on my own. I have always been induced late. I won't go over a week overdue anymore because I have had meconium anytime I have gone more than a week overdue. My doctor has said he would like to induce me between Feb 20th and March 5th. I was planning on waiting until March 5th until...we found out that Roger has weekend meetings shortly after that. I will have Roger's mom here to help me, and my parents are planning to come help for the weekend, too, but that was certainly not the original plan. Me...seven kids...one being a newborn...and no daddy for an entire weekend...let's just say I'm a little kerflumped! Yeah, I just made up that word because I couldn't think of another word that was appropriate!
So, I have gone from thinking I had 4 weeks to having the baby to now only having a little over two! HYPERSPEED!!! I hadn't even started on Ligon's burp cloths, or blankets. I didn't even have fabric yet! I have a lot of organizing left to do, but I got a lot done yesterday, I made a shopping trip last weekend for fabric, and I went into hyperspeed sewing Sunday afternoon and yesterday afternoon. Here is the final result...

*click on the pictures to view better*

And then...there are days like this...

2012-01-24T17:26:00.000-05:00

I will get to Part 2 in the next few days, but just so you realize just how much I don't "have it all together"...

For the past few days I really haven't felt well. I'm 35 weeks pregnant, and my energy level has been very minimal today and yesterday. I feel exhausted. I have indigestion that makes me feel nauseous. If I could lay in bed all day...I think I would!

I have a two year old who is just so stinkin' cute, but his energy level is through the roof and his curiosity is through...well... I don't know...the atmospshere! He has emptied out nearly every piece of clothing from his dresser a few times yesterday, first thing this morning, and I have been too scared to veer into his room the rest of the day, so I have no idea what it looks like now. He also had fun playing in the toilet this afternoon when I was doing something else, which means he needs cleaned, the toilet needs cleaned, and the floor needs cleaned, too. Maybe I should have made him take a nap today?!

I have another child who seems to take pride in getting on everyone's last nerve lately....including mine! Yes, I love him dearly, but it is still possible for someone you love to get on your nerves!

I have another child who gets overwhelmed very easily and falls apart several times a day. When I don't have energy it's hard to muster up energy to pull him back up again.

I have another child who I think truly believes that multiplication is straight from the devil! Is it???

I have another child who...well...he's been pretty good!

And then, I have a baby girl who just needs mommy to have energy!

Like I said the other day...not every day is lollipops, giggles and glitter (and let me remind you...I still despise glitter!), but in a few hours these little people will be sleeping blissfully in their beds, I will put my feet up, and tomorrow I will hopefully wake up with more energy!!! Please, Lord!

And for today, I am grateful for Campbell's chicken and noodle soup!

Even in the the energy-less, difficult days...I will choose to count my blessings...one, two, three, four, five, six...and in five weeks...seven!!!

Part 1--The Semi-Well-Oiled Machine...Helping them help you

2012-01-19T10:15:00.000-05:00

I am often asked, "How do you do it all?" I think it is time to answer that question! I'm always looking for a better way of doing things, so our schedule gets tweaked here and there. Maybe by posting about what works best for our family will help another family become a better semi-well-oiled machine! Oh, and by the way...don't ever expect us to be a completely well-oiled machine! The "semi" part is the best it can be! If you leave that part off then you will set yourself up for failure.

We are a team! Just as Jesus served others while He lived on earth...we are to serve one another. This is probably one of the most important concepts to get a grasp of in a family. We are not out for ourselves, we are here to serve the whole! This is a great concept because it teaches love, humility, and selflessness.

Our children have "jobs" to do almost every day of the week. I help them help me. And trust me...they are A LOT of help! I teach them to do different "jobs" around the house, which helps them feel as though they are really contributing to the family, it gives them a sense of accomplishment, it helps them know how they can serve our family, it teaches them discipline...and it frees up some of my time, so I have more time to have fun with them!!!! Please understand this...children are children...they should be expected to do their very best when completing a job, but it may not completely live up to your expectations. You must teach them to do the jobs how you would like them to be done! Do not expect them to understand your expectations if you haven't taught them how to do the job correctly! Sometimes I have to go back and do their jobs with them to remind them about the little things (ie take things off the counter before you wipe it down, etc). Let me reiterate this...they should be expected to do their best! Laziness is not a good character quality!

You want specifics, right? Here you go!
Everyone is expected to clean their own room, make their beds, brush teeth, bring me their laundry on laundry days, and the older 3 put away their own laundry
Lauren: Dishes, wipe down kitchen counters, dust when needed, sometimes helps vacuum carpets, take care of dog and cat
Franklin: vacuum under table after every meal, mop kitchen when needed, sometimes helps vacuum carpets, clean master bath (wipe down toilet, counter, sinks) daily
Ari: clean out the van each Monday, clear off and wipe off table after each meal, clean the kids bathroom upstairs (wipe down toilet, counter and sink) daily
Miles: Wipe down chairs after meals (this is more busy work than anything, and he is a little guy that needs to be kept busy), clean downstairs bathroom (toilet, counter, sink---he does a really great job!!!) daily, empty bathroom trash cans daily
Ian: he loves to clean! He'll get wipes and wipe off the floor, cabinets, table, and just about anything he can get his hands on. In the next year he will probably get the job of emptying trash cans and making sure each bathroom has at least one extra roll of toilet paper.
These are all little things, but they are so helpful to me!

As for me...I'm always busy! I don't sit around and watch tv while my children work! There is always a lot to do! I, typically, do clothing laundry Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, sheets on Thursday, and sometimes I have to add in another day of laundry on the weekend. I give baths to little ones, cut lots of finger nails and toenails, teach school to the older four, and a little bit to Ian, too, vacuum when needed, which is a lot since I have a baby who puts everything in her mouth, deep clean bathrooms, keep the inside of toilets clean, cook all of the meals, clean up messes, change lots of diapers, pick up after little ones. Because my children help me I am able to do all of the other things, but still have time to play with them, and then we don't have to spend the weekend cleaning. Doing jobs each day helps us keep up, and keeps the house almost continually clean.

I choose to do my big jobs (bathrooms, vacuuming) when I can work it in. I used to have a schedule and try to clean one bathroom per day and choose another day to vacuum, but that didn't work for me because I need more flexibility. And right now, I have a big pregnant belly, so deep cleaning a bathtub is next to impossible. That is when I enlist my husbands help on the weekends or evenings!

One more thing that is really helpful is what I call "Quick cleans." A few times during the day I can yell, "Quick Clean...10 minutes!!!" This is great for us because during those 10 minutes everyone is expected to run around and clean up as much as possible in 10 minutes. If we didn't do this a few times during the day then the house would be a mess by evening with little toys everywhere and big messes are much more overwhelming to clean up then a few little messes throughout the day.

So, that is pretty much how our semi-well-oiled machine works! In the upcoming "Part 2" I will list what a typical day looks like in our house...our schedule. We have a schedule that is working very well for us right now. At least until our next baby gets here, and then we'll have to find a new normal again!

Any questions?

I'm not SuperWoman

2012-01-18T09:16:00.000-05:00

I am referred to as "SuperWoman" frequently. I know people mean well, and I really appreciate the compliment, but I am a fallible wife, mom, daughter, friend, etc. Sometimes I feel like I am being set up for failure because I am held to "superhero status." Yes, I have six kids and I am getting ready to have our seventh. Yes, I deliver our children without medication (not really by choice). Yes, I homeschool our children. Yes, I sometimes go grocery shopping, or to stores, or to doctor's appointments with all of my children with me.
And here is some reality for you...
-Our new baby was a surprise, and it has taken me all these months to adjust to adding another child. I am truly grateful for him, though!
-I hate labor and delivery! It's NOT fun. It hurts. I don't enjoy it. BUT, I get to hold a sweet baby in my arms when it is over.
-I am glad I homeschool our children. I feel that it is best for them. BUT, some days are really tough. It's not all giggles, lollipops, and glitter (I despise glitter, by the way!). Sometimes it is impatience on my part, and nasty attitudes exuded from my children.
-Going places with my kids is not always enjoyable. Sometimes, things get placed in a cart that weren't supposed to be there. One time...not too long ago...something got broken....oh, that was really bad! Sometimes, little ones say things...not to be mean...but because they noticed...such as, "Mom, she has a wart on her face. She must be a witch!" Sometimes a hole to crawl into would be nice!

I don't post a lot of mishaps/misbehaviors on my blog, or on facebook because I want to remain positive about my children. I don't believe the world needs to know about every little ~~catastrophe~~ thing they do wrong. Let's face it, though... I have a two year old! Enough said! I truly try to be mostly transparent. I don't try to give the impression that every day is giddy, giddy gumdrops! At the same time, I want to encourage other moms! I want moms to know that some days are tough, but you can always start fresh the next morning.

For the most part, I think our family functions really well. I am training up my tribe to serve the Lord. I enjoy being with my children...for the most part.

They love. They argue. They laugh. They hit, occasionally. They hug. They get angry. They giggle. They get on each other's nerves. They can't stand to be away from each other. They.are.human. They are learning. We all are.

I do my best to stay on a schedule, stay organized, remain consistent with disobedience, praise obedience, keep everyone busy, find enjoyable moments, give as many hugs and kisses as possible, and find laughter throughout the day. We are a semi, well-oiled machine.

I love being a mom...most of the time. I don't love disobedience, or nasty attitudes, or messes, or spills, or poopy diapers, or cleaning up puke... BUT... I love their hugs and kisses and "I love you's" and watching them learn to read and cuddles and accomplishments and the way they serve each other and the way they want to please me and the way their faces light up when I walk through the door even if I've only been gone for a few hours...and...and...and...
God has called me to be a wife and a mom. I am so thankful. I choose to focus on the positive. If that makes me a SuperWoman then so be it! But remember...even superheroes make mistakes! I'm just going to do my best to get back up and dust myself off.

I love a great deal!

2011-11-04T10:28:00.000-04:00

My mom always taught me to be a bargain shopper. Anytime we went shopping we would go straight to the back of the store...to the sale racks. We were ~~cheap~~ frugal! We were always dressed very well, but we never paid full price for anything! Still, to this day, I refuse to pay full price for clothing.

I love the JC Penney coupon's we get in the mail that are "$10 off" with no minimum to purchase. You can literally get something for free, as long as it is under $10. I never buy jewelry for myself unless I have this coupon. Every time I get this coupon I get super excited because I get to buy something for ME! I cannot bring myself to waste money on jewelry, but if it's free...then count me in! Last night I got the coolest necklace and earring set that were originally $18, marked down to 10.80, and my grand total was $0.85! What a great deal?!

I have another coupon for $10 off a purchase of $25 or more. I don't usually use these, BUT Roger could use a few more sweaters this year, and they have a really great sweater marked from $49.99 down to $24.99, so I will get something small for someone else to get me up to $25 and I will get that $50 sweater for $15! He is going to look so GOOD!

There is a consignment sale this week, too. Lauren and I went last night and got some really great deals. I got the cutest sweater for Ligon for $4, and GAP overalls for $2. I also got Bethany a Christmas outfit for $3, and some dressy maternity pants for me for $5. And lastly, I got Ari a pair of Timberland constuction boots for $10 that look practically new. Later at the mall I found the same boots for $65! Now, you see why "I love a great deal!"

Pregnancy woes

2011-10-31T10:05:00.000-04:00

I am not one to complain when it comes to pregnancy. Even when I puke for months! I feel blessed each time I get pregnant. I have friends with fertility issues, so complaining about being pregnant seems very selfish to me.
This post is more for me to look back on in the future and see where I was...to remember. It is also to help anyone else who has felt this way, feels this way, or will feel this way in the future...to know they are not alone.

This pregnancy is, by far, the most difficult. I made a comment on facebook recently that I felt like I was going through post partum depression...and I haven't even had the baby yet! Thankfully, others chimed in and said that it is absolutely possible to have depression during pregnancy.

This is what it feels like...
moody, beyond belief...about nothing...and everything...at the same time
crying...over nothing...and everything...at the same time
anger...over nothing...and everything...at the same time
completely overwhelmed...over nothing...and everything...at the same time
absolutely intolerant...over nothing..and everything...at the same time
feeling like I need to get away from everything and everyone and curl up in a ball until I feel better

It's kind of like the very worst in me is right at the surface. It is not the typical me. It is not me at all. I don't know who this person is. She comes and goes. She was here with a vengeance this weekend. She seems to have taken a vacation ~~today~~ at the moment.

I studied Psychology in college. It still fascinates me. Maybe even more now. I knew depression was real. I knew it could be chemically imposed. Hormonally imposed. I have a new compassion for those who suffer from depression. I understand the feeling. The feeling of it being completely "out of control." You cannot talk yourself out of it.

In the end...it will be worth it. It always is.

Well Visits...Franklin, Ari, Miles and Bethany, and Ligon, too!

2011-10-27T20:48:00.000-04:00

Franklin and Ari had their 8 year and 6 year (respectably) well visits with the pediatrician September 1st. Franklin weighed 47 pounds (7th %tile), and was 47.75 inches (10th %tile). He is staying on the smaller side, but following the same pattern he has had since he was a baby. Ari was 45 pounds (37th %tile) and 46.5 inches (56th %tile). He has always been on the taller end of the spectrum. Franklin and Ari have been wearing the same size clothing for quite a while now. So far, it doesn't seem to bother Franklin (he doesn't even think about it) that he and Ari are almost the same size. According to Franklin and Ari,the best part of the doctor visit was "getting to pee in a cup." The least favorite part was when Ari got 2 shots.

Bethany and Miles had their 9 month (she'll be 10 months on Sunday!) and 5 year (respectably) appointments yesterday. Bethany weighed 16 pounds and 13 ounces (10th %tile), and measured 29.75 inches long (90th %tile). Oh, to be tall and skinny like her!!! She got a flu shot, but that was it yesterday. It was nice to have an easy day for her. She barely even cried when she got the shot. Miles weighed 40.5 pounds (48th %tile), and was 43.5 inches (61st %tile). He was in the normal range for Iron, but the very, very low end, so we need to increase his iron intake over the next year. It was suggested that we buy Flintstones vitamins with iron. He went to the allergist a few months ago because of a terrible reaction to a wasp sting, and because of the testing they did (9 little shots!!! Ouch!) he is terrified to go to the doctor. Actually, he is terrified of nurses because the nurses did the testing at the allergist. Much to his dismay, he got 2 shots, which he said "they didn't even hurt" and he was "fake crying." He could have received as many as 5 or six, but we declined the flu shot since Bethany was only getting her first and it is a live vaccine and we also declined the chicken pox shot because it is another live vaccine and she will not get that shot until her 12 month check-up, and we lastly declined the pneumonia shot. Everyone will be getting a flu shot when we go back in 30 days for Bethany to get her second flu shot. Shhhhh...don't tell them! Miles will get his chicken pox shot and one other when I take Bethany for her 12 month well-visit. That should be fun!...two kids getting shots at the same time!

I had a quick check-up yesterday for our newest little guy, Ligon, yesterday, too. I was 22 weeks pregnant on Monday. I am doing well, except for being dizzy off and on, so I am going to boost my liquid intake/trips to the bathroom, and protein. Other than that, Ligon seems to be growing well, he is active, and his heart rate is great! Grow, Ligon, grow!!!

Conversational tangents

2011-06-10T09:31:00.000-04:00

Anytime I get one-on-one time with my kids I consider it a wonderful blessing! They love it, too! Our time usually consists of them talking, and talking, and talking! They love the fact that they can talk without being interrupted, and I have their undivided attention. The conversations usually go in tangents because they want to talk about everything! It is always enjoyable and very cute!

Last night I took Lauren's friend home and then decided to leave Lauren there to spend the night. So, it was just me, Franklin and Bethany. It was his chance to talk! And boy, did he ever?! He talked about wanting to be spiderman when he grows up, and Miles, too, so they could save New York. I asked him why New York needed to be saved and he said, "Because of Venom, of course!" Well, of course! He talked about our recent trip to Disney World, and the scary Haunted Mansion, and about spending time with his best friend and cousin, Levi. And then the conversation moved to Bethany, and this is how it went:
Franklin: Mom, is it possible that Bethany is a boy?
Me: No, Franklin, she is definitely a girl!
Franklin: Maybe she just hasn't grown her part yet.
Me: *laughing hard* No, she would have grown her part while she was inside me if she were a boy.
Franklin: Well, I don't know. I think it's possible.

I'm still laughing!

Good news...followed by bad stuff...but it's okay

2011-06-10T09:23:00.000-04:00

Wednesday morning we received an email from our landlords. They have agreed to allow us to stay in their rental home until July 15th. That is a HUGE answer to prayer! We are grateful! We told them that we would remove as much as we could from the house, so it would not looked cluttered and they agreed that they would prefer that we do that. So, this weekend we will be busy packing and decluttering! I LOVE decluttering!

I was elated at our good news. I was excited, too, because we were going to a friends house for lunch, play time, and for me to look over her homeschool curriculum. I got everyone loaded into the hot van. Lauren couldn't get the portable dvd player to work, so I was untangling cords and replugging everything and still could not get it to work. I told the kids we would listen to music instead. So, dripping with sweat and ready to turn on the air, I put the key in the ignition and ....nothing. We had a dead battery. I unloaded all of the kids, called our friends with great disappointment (especially for Lauren because her best friend was going to come home to spend the night), and called Roger to let him know what was going on. We were all bummed. Then, back to good news...a friend from Roger's work told him about this place that will send someone to your home to replace the battery! That was great! In the end, our friends came over, ended up staying for dinner, we had a blast, Lauren's bff got to spend the night and everyone was happy!

Up and downs

2011-06-06T12:15:00.000-04:00

Our lives have been full of ups and downs since we moved in December. Here is how life has been (as I remember it, anyway!)...
Ian got an ear infection, so I got him to the doctor quickly to get him on meds before we moved.
We left Florida December 15th, and woke up to a terrible ice storm in NC the 16th. Roger and Franklin had already left to meet the movers at our rental home (they were stuck in NC, too!). My MIL, Frances, and I got on the road in our 15 passenger van with our other four children and me due to have Bethany in a little less than two weeks. The roads were scary! Roger called and told us to get off the road because they were watching cars and semi's slide off the road left and right. After a few hours he called again and told us to go back and find a hotel. Thankfully, we found a great mall with a very nice hotel in the parking lot and stayed for the night. We had fun at the mall walking around and watching a movie. We bought some clothes to go swimming in the hotel pool, too. We had a great time! The next day we hit the road again and couldn't wait to make it to our new/temporary home. Roger called as we were driving and let me know that he was having problems with the movers and that we were going to have to make the family room the master bedroom. Wait! What???...lose connection...ughhh! When we finally arrived at the house Roger was very frustrated with the movers. At one point they threatened to throw everything in the street and drive away. They put almost everything in the basement(the basement is ground level), which put us in a terrible jam. Roger was able to carry the bunk beds and crib upstairs and set them up, but I was too pregnant to help him carry anything else. We called one of our new pastors and asked if someone could come help us carry everything else upstairs. In walks Rusty!!! A BIG man with a caring heart! We could not have done it without him and his two sons!
On Sunday we went to our new church for the first time. It was love at first visit! Ian woke up with a rash on his torso, but we weren't too concerned. Sunday night Ian woke up in the middle of the night vomiting and with a fever. Monday evening we had dinner with the Dys family from our new church, but left Ian home with Frances. On Tuesday Ian's fever was higher and he was vomiting again, so I decided to take him to the doctor. Keep in mind, he had been on antibiotics for 8 days at this point, so it was odd for him to have a fever. Problem...the pediatrician did not want to see him because he was not an established patient. I explained that we had just moved there on Friday, and didn't know what else to do. They decided to go ahead and see him that morning because they were concerned about him. I took him to our new pediatrician who said that he still had an ear infection, and his glands in his neck were swollen. She sent him for bloodwork and ordered a different antibiotic. As I was waiting for his new antibiotic the ped office called and said that his white blood cell count was really high and that I needed to take him to the emergency room to be admitted for testing. There I was...in the middle of Rite Aid...big pregnant...tears streaming down my face...and so many kind, compassionate strangers telling me everything would be okay. We got to the hospital and they did another round of blood work. This is no easy task! Ian has terrible veins!!! His white blood cell count went from 33,000 to 48,000 in a matter of about 4 hours. It should have been no higher than 12,000. Panic set in! They were calling in an infectious disease doctor...and...an oncologist. Oncologist...cancer...one of my greatest fears. Once again, tears were streaming down my face and I was very afraid. I needed Roger to get there! They were running numerous tests and nothing was coming back positive, so they decided they wanted to do a spinal tap. "Wait a second! He doesn't have any symptoms of spinal meningitis. Why would we do a spinal tap?" "Just to rule it out." "But he doesn't have any symptoms! No, let's wait until tomorrow." "Well, I don't recommend waiting, but okay, we'll do it in the morning." When we finally got to our room (after midnight) the nurse told us that there would be no reason to do a spinal tap because they had already started him on IV antibiotics, so the test would not show anything. Hmmmm... And then the next morning... His white blood cell count had come down a little, so they decided not to do a spinal tap. And then the following morning...his white blood cell count was back up, so they wanted to do a spinal tap again. Thankfully, they consulted with the infectious disease doctor who said there was no reason to do a spinal tap. In the end, Ian spent four days in the hospital. It has been assumed that the terrible infection in his throat was causing his white blood cell count to go up, even though it was a viral infection. He was not getting any better in the hospital. The antibiotics were not doing anything because the infection was viral. We were ready to go home! I wanted to be home with my family Christmas morning, so I convinced the doctors to let us leave. We got home Friday night, Christmas Eve, and spent Christmas with a terribly sick little boy.
Sunday night...Ari and Franklin woke up in the night...vomiting. Nooooooo!!! Roger woke up Monday morning feeling very sick. And it all went downhill from there! Lauren and Miles got sick on Tuesday, I got sick Tuesday evening and then Frances and I were both sick on Wednesday...and I was scheduled to be induced on Thursday. Oh my! I went to bed Wednesday night feeling awful and was up all through the night. Roger asked if I would cancel the induction, but I really didn't know what to do. I wanted to get labor over! The hospital called at 4am and told me to be there at 6:30am. I decided I would go ahead and do it. I didn't feel well during labor, but I felt better than I had the day before. Bethany arrived Thursday evening (I still need to write down her birth story!), and we felt like things should get better from there.
Ian got better and then worse, and then better, and then worse...over and over. When Bethany was two weeks old we took Ian to get tubes in his ears. We hoped that would help. It helped his ears, but not his throat. He could not get rid of the infection in his throat completely. Finally, I took him back to the ENT for a check-up and told him we needed to do something else. He had been on four different antibiotics and a steroid in 4 weeks and he was still sick. The only thing left to do was to take out his tonsils. Ian was the youngest patient our doctor had operated on for tonsils and adenoids, but it seemed to be the only thing to do. Ians tonsils were so bad that they were literally falling apart and the ENT had to be very careful while cutting them out. Ian breezed through surgery and mostly through recovery and is finally a healthy little boy!
Our house situation...
We have had a terrible time finding a house we want to buy. We are looking for something very specific and don't want to settle too much. The house we are renting was put back on the market in March, which we agreed to in our lease agreement. In April they got a contract on the house and we were told we needed to be out May 15th. In the meantime, we found a house we want to buy, but cannot move in until July. So, what do we do for 6 weeks? Good question! We found a house to rent for 3 months, but as Roger got to the house to sign the lease agreement the owner was in the backyard shaking hands with another man...he had just sold the house! We had movers ready to come on Wednesday to move us into the house. This was a Saturday! Once again, I was panicked! We wanted to talk to the buyers of the house we are renting to ask if we could rent the house from them until July, but no one would let us speak to them. When the house was inspected they found problems with the foundation. It was up and down for a while, but in the end, the contract fell through. Now, the owners have given us until June 15th, but we cannot move into our new house until July 15th. What now?! We have no idea. Roger is going to talk to our landlords and plead for one more month. As for me...I just cannot wait to get into our new house and finally get settled!!!! Bethany is 5 months old and I have still not been able to nest!

Comparing the Arctic and Antarctica

2011-05-25T08:38:00.000-04:00

We studied the Arctic a few weeks ago and this week we began studying Antarctica. Today we were discussing a comparison between the two areas. This is how it went...
Me: Remember...Antarctica is at the South pole and that is where penguins live. The Arctic is at the North pole and that is where...*Franklin interjects here****"Santa Claus lives!!!Hahahahahah!!!

He is a little too quick sometimes!!! I'm glad he can crack himself up! We had a great laugh and then I had to settle everyone down, so we could get back to school!

A discussion on hair dye

2011-05-25T08:30:00.000-04:00

Lauren: If I had blonde hair I would dye it red. (she has brown hair, btw!)
Franklin: Why don't you color your hair?
Lauren: Mom says I can't until I grow up, move out, and have my own family. (hmmm...I don't remember this!)
Franklin: Well, boys don't even dye their hair.
Lauren: Yes they do!!! They dye it pink or blue and spike it.

Sometimes I wonder where they come up with these things! I love listening to their conversations!

She cries...No one comes.

2011-04-01T09:05:00.000-04:00

A beautiful baby.
A beautiful, brand new baby.
She is placed in a crib.
Alone.
She cries.
No one comes.
She cries until she is worn out.
Eventually she is fed and possibly her diaper is changed.
She is sleepy.
She cries.
No one comes.
Eventually she cries herself to sleep.
She awakes.
All she wants is to be held.
She cries.
No one comes.
Many weeks pass.
She wants to eat.
She wants to sleep.
She wants to be cuddled.
She cries.
No one comes.
Months pass.
She no longer cries.

This is the life of many orphans. Babies speak to us through crying. It is how they tell us they are hungry, or tired, or that they just need to be held. If their cries are always ignored...eventually they will stop crying.

In the first 24 hours of Bethany's life she would cry for no reason other than wanting to be held. Of course, I gladly obliged! I could pick her up and she would immediately stop crying. Even now, at 3 months old, when she gets sleepy I pick her up, she cuddles into me and goes right to sleep. It has made me think a lot about orphans. I am not exaggerating when I say that babies lay in their cribs and eventually forget how to cry. I realized this more when my 8 year old came crying to me recently because she had hurt herself. Many 8 year old orphans hurt themselves, but shed no tears, and go to no one for comfort...because they don't know how.

How do I know this? Because I have seen it! I have seen it through a friend's children who were adopted from Eastern Europe. They would get hurt, but they wouldn't cry and they wouldn't seek to be comforted. It was the same for Nastia, the orphan we hosted last Summer. In the beginning, we were strangers to her, so I could understand why she wouldn't come to us for comfort if she stubbed her toe. But over time, I could see that going to someone for comfort was actually uncomfortable because it was not normal for her.

Why would I write all of this? Because I want you to think. I want you to think about the millions of orphans around the world. I want you to do something! Adopt...support someone else who is adopting...pray...
because God wants you to!

If you have any questions about how you can adopt, or how you can help someone else adopt, or how you can support an orphanage please leave me a comment!!!

Why does God allow pain?

2011-03-29T15:02:00.000-04:00

Why does God allow pain? The answers often seem so trite.
"No pain...no gain." Really?
"He won't give you more than you can handle." Well, why give it to me at all?
"Because it draws you closer to Him." One would hope, but sometimes it makes us bitter.

I don't have all of the answers. I can only share what God has taught me. And, He taught me a big lesson last week.

And, so the story goes...

It was Wednesday night. Last Wednesday night. All of my children were sleeping blissfully in their warm, comfortable beds. I was thinking about the day and how happy Ian had been. This poor little guy has been so sick the past three months with terrible infections in his throat, so it was wonderful to see him SO happy. He had been dancing and singing and jumping and playing. It was so good to see him so happy...and healthy. I was standing in the kitchen talking to Roger when I broke down crying. Of course, he asked what was wrong and this was my reply, "I feel so guilty." You see, I had watched my little guy be happy all day and he was oblivious to the fact that I...yes me...by myself...was taking him to the hospital the following morning and allowing people to put him in terrible pain. How could I do this to my child? Why would I allow someone to hurt him? He is too little to understand. Are we sure this is best for him? Do we have to put him through this? In the end, I knew this was best for him, but I still didn't want to do it.

And then...God showed me that it is the same for tough circumstances in our lives...for painful moments in our lives.
Why would God allow people, or circumstances to hurt us? How could He do that to us? Are we too "young" to understand? How could this possibly be what is best for us? Do we have to go through this?

I understand that getting tonsils removed pales in comparison to tough circumstances in life, but it was through Ian's surgery that He taught me that sometimes pain is necessary to bring us to what is good. Ian's tonsils were so bad that they were literally falling apart. It appeared that he was finally getting healthy, but, in reality, he was still a very sick little boy. He needed to go through the pain of having his tonsils surgically removed, so he could get to what is good...living without this terrible infection...being truly healthy.

Putting it into perspective...life examples:
I have had three miscarriages, losing four precious babies. Yes, God allowed this pain. It is still painful. So, how can this be good for me? Why would He allow me to go through this? I do not know completely. Somehow, He works all things together for our good. I do know that I am much more compassionate and understanding when a mom loses her baby to miscarriage. I know that God is sometimes silent, but always present. I know that He knows what is best for me and I need to trust Him...even when I do not understand. I see each child as a miracle and I am amazed each time I deliver a healthy baby...and completely grateful.

Praying for those who are going through the bad, and wondering where the good is:
A couple in WV who recently lost their baby when she was only 24 weeks pregnant.
My friend, Rachel's, brother and sister-in-law who lost their baby recently, just a few weeks before the due date.
My sweet cousin, Robin, who is grieving the loss of her 34 year old husband who tragically died last week...and her three precious children, who are missing their daddy.
My friend, Stephanie, who is going through treatments for cancer while trying to be a wife and mommy.
My on-line friend, Tesney, and her husband who flew all the way to Russia for a second time to adopt their little boy with Down Syndrome, but were refused by the judge. And so, Kirill sits in a mental institution with no person to love him.

Where is the good in these situations? I have no idea. BUT, I know God is there...He knows their journey...and even when we cannot see the good...it is there...somewhere.

HE can move the mountains!

2011-03-15T22:19:00.000-04:00

We received an email yesterday reminding us that in our lease agreement the owners of this house can put it back on the market...effective today! Yes, we remembered that! It went on to say that our lease is up April 15th. Yes, we remembered that, too! Except, we thought we had agreed to a possible two month extension. Guess what? It's not in the contract!!! Yes...we have one month to: find a house, pack this house, close on our new house, and move.
At first...I wanted to SCREAM!!! Okay, so maybe I did panic...okay, so maybe I am still a little panicked. BUT, God brought us here, He has a home for us, and we are learning that He can move the mountains! Pleasssssssssse Lord...move this mountain...quickly!

A "sort of" trip to China

2011-03-10T23:17:00.001-05:00

We are studying China this week and next week in school. My kids have been intrigued by China for the past year, so they are super excited to finally get to study this country. Roger works with "Lucy" who is from China, so he asked if she would be interested in joining us for dinner to tell us about her country. Thankfully, she said she would be happy to come!
We had SO much fun!!! She was so sweet! She answered all of our questions and taught us some Chinese and wrote "The Lord's Prayer" in Chinese for Lauren and then read it for us, too. She also brought gifts from the last time she was in China. She was such a sweetheart!
I made orange chicken with white rice and sesame chicken with noodles. Lucy said it was good! She also told me about a Chinese market close by and offered to go with us to try some new foods. I think that would be a great opportunity! This was a great evening!

Indoor BBQ?

2011-03-09T20:49:00.000-05:00

I was sitting downstairs feeding Bethany, Ian was taking a nap, and the other four were upstairs playing. Lauren came bounding down the stairs yelling, "MOM!!! Come upstairs FAST!" My first question is typically, "Is someone bleeding?" She assured me that everyone was okay, but I needed to come NOW. I got upstairs to her bedroom to find Miles strapped to a chair (not in a hurtful kind of way!), and this is what had me almost literally rolling on the floor...Ari was laying on her bed on his stomach, wrapped in a pink blanket with his head up and a whole apple in his mouth. Lauren declared, "We're having a barbecue!" It was SO FUNNY!!! Okay, so maybe you had to be there, but it was totally funny to me at the time! I wish I could have made it back up there soon enough with my camera!
These kids keep life funny!

I'm baaaaack!!!

2011-03-08T10:04:00.000-05:00

I haven't blogged in almost a year and I've missed it! I have some things on my mind that I need to get on a page, so I am coming back to blogging. I'm going public for a while and we'll see how it goes.

the saga continues...

2010-03-27T19:12:00.002-04:00

Lauren, Franklin, and I were supposed to go see The Sound of Music at Astronaut High School last night. We borrowed the movie from the library to watch, in advance, so we would be ready for the musical. We were so excited! Franklin asked all day, "How many hours until we leave?!" About an hour before we were supposed to leave Franklin began vomiting. I felt so bad for him. He was so disappointed that he couldn't go.
Lauren and I enjoyed the musical. It didn't start until 7:30 and it wasn't over until 10:30. As we pulled into the driveway I noticed two sets of Ian's sheets and mattress covers in the grass next to the house. I immediately knew what that meant. Either he had diarrhea, or he was vomiting. Well, he vomited at 8:00, then again at 10:15. Poor little baby. I was up with him at 12:15 because he vomited again. I don't know how many times Franklin was up in the night, but it was a lot! I am exhausted.
I kept having this feeling last night that Roger was going to get sick. Everytime he moved I was prepared for him to get out of bed to be sick. It didn't happen...not last night, at least. Today is another story! He didn't feel well this afternoon, and now he is spending his quality time in the oval office.
SICKNESS...BE GONE!!!

A wonderful surprise

2010-03-25T21:07:00.002-04:00

Roger had to go to a meeting last Tuesday evening after I got home from the hospital with Ian. I really didn't want him to go. I was exhausted, and not feeling great, and Ian was miserable. Well, he came home with this amazing surprise he WON at the meeting! How great is that?!

So tired...of this...

2010-03-25T20:40:00.002-04:00

Do you ever have moments that you just want to sit and cry because nothing seems to be going right? I'm there! From Ian's illness and hospital visit, and then the stomach bug that passed through Ian, me and Lauren to little things in life just adding up.
Lauren and Franklin went to help their grandma pull some weeds on Tuesday. I needed some groceries, so I packed up my three little guys and headed to Walmart. We were having fun looking at the clearance aisles, and picked up some good deals. It was lunchtime, so we went to the McDonald's inside Walmart. Miles said he didn't want anything to eat. He said, "I'm sick. I need a drink." To me, that meant, "I want some Coke." I kept saying, "You silly boy. You're not sick!" And then...halfway through lunch...as he is sharing a coke with me and Ari...he vomits all over! No, no, no!!! All I could think was, "Oh great! Now I just exposed Ari to this stuff!" I kindly left everything at the front of the store and told them I had to leave. He was sluggish the rest of the day, but he hadn't vomited...until tonight. He hasn't eaten well the past few days, but he hasn't complained about being sick.
To top it all off...Ian has somehow caught a cold, and Lauren has a really sore throat. Ian was also up from 11:15-2:30 two nights ago...I am tired...

The sick bug BITES!

2010-03-22T20:40:00.002-04:00

Last week was a very crazy week! Ian had been running a fever for 9 days and it was going up, so I decided to take him to the doctor Monday morning. I thought that maybe he had an ear infection. Well, the doctor checked him and said his left lung sounded bad and suspected pneumonia. I was shocked! He said he wanted to admit him to the hospital and run some tests because this fever had already gone on too long and since it was getting higher it was a sign that his body was working too hard to fight it. Again...shocked! I had no expectation of going to the hospital.
They had a very difficult time getting blood and getting the IV in. They finally found a place to put it in his foot. He was very unhappy! He felt miserable! He had fluid in his lung, but it wasn't pneumonia. Everything else came back negative. His fever persisted. The doctor was confused and thought that it may be a viral infection in his blood...sort of like mono, except Ian is too young to have mono. I convinced the doctor to let us go home the next day, but his fever was still there, so they gave him an IV bag of antibiotics first. Our deductible for insurance is $10,000, so this is all going to be out of pocket! Ouch! The doctor completely understood and agreed to let us go home as long as I would bring him back to the office the next morning.
Ian's 11 day fever finally broke in the night, so we were relieved. I noticed a rash on him while we were in the doctor's office the next morning. The doctor said that was a good sign. Children will sometimes break out in a rash when their fever breaks. That's new to me! Of course, if his fever came back then that would be a bad sign! The doctor also noticed that Ian had an ear infection. He had checked his ears several times in the hospital, so I'm not sure when that happened. He had already sent us home from the hospital with an antibiotic, so we were good to go.
And then, we both got sick with a stomach virus that I think we picked up at the hospital. Niiiice! And then, Lauren got it, too!
Yeah, it was a tough week!

Ian is still sick

2010-03-13T20:01:00.002-05:00

He is not feeling well. Cutting four teeth. A fever for almost a week. A trip to the doctor on Monday? Possibly...

Check this out!!!

2010-03-12T21:56:00.000-05:00

http://fromlatviatolove.blogspot.com

Poor little Ian

2010-03-12T20:35:00.002-05:00

Ian has not been feeling well all week. He woke up with a lot of "gunk" in his eye last Sunday morning, then ended up with a fever that he has been fighting all week. If it doesn't clear up by Monday I think I will need to take him to the doctor. He is cutting all four of his molers, too, so he isn't a very happy guy. He hasn't eaten well all week, but he has been drinking a lot of fluids.

In Quarantine!

2010-02-18T15:15:00.002-05:00

Everyone is sick! All seven of us have colds. Stuffy and drippy noses, scratchy and sore throats, sneezing, coughs... I can't think of a time when all of us were sick at the same time. This, too, shall pass!

Happy Birthday to Ian!

2010-02-05T23:17:00.003-05:00

My baby is 1! It really does not seem possible. I know he is mine and I am probably biased, but he is the most precious baby in the world! He is quick to smile, quick to laugh, quick to give big open-mouth slobbery kisses, and quick to melt my heart. I am so in love with this little blessing!

I know I haven't updated in a while, so here is the one year update.

He crawls. He says, "mama," "dada," "bye-bye," and he signs "more" and " all done." He laughs at his sister and brothers often. I am weaning him off his bottle, which makes me very sad in some ways. He is completely on table food. He LOVES green beans and marshmallows! He pulls himself up to stand, and may take one or two steps while holding onto the table, but he isn't close to walking yet. He can stand on his own for a few seconds. He gets into everything and puts everything in his mouth! He is learning to climb. (Yikes!) He loves whole milk with a little bit of Ovaltine mixed in. He loves music and cannot sit still when the music begins!

He is my little love! I really can't explain how much I love my sweet Ian. It only barely puts into perspective how much God loves me. I cannot even fathom God's love for me. I think He gave me Roger and my children to give me a glimpse of His love for me.

Happy Birthday, my sweet Ian! You are precious in His sight!

Little giggles

2009-12-07T16:45:00.003-05:00

Surrender

2009-11-24T10:26:00.002-05:00

There really is no greater way to introduce this post except..."Surrender." Life is often all about surrendering. Surrendering our will to God. Surrendering our rights. Surrendering our money. Surrendering our time.

I have wanted to adopt for as long as I can remember. It is my passion. It is my desire. It is my greatest wish. It would be one of the greatest gifts I could imagine.

For now...I surrender this to God. I trust Him. We have tried to adopt several times in the past few years and it has always fallen through. I know it will happen when the time is right. I know that HE works all things together for our good. Obviously, it has not been for our good yet! I believe it will be in the future.

We recently considered pursuing adoption through the foster care system. It's free, by the way! In Florida there is a Foster-to-adopt program. This means that you must qualify as a foster parent before you can adopt. This includes going through 10 weeks of classes (3 hours/week), and then completing a home study before a child can be placed with you. Therein lies the problem. With the campaign taking off, there is no guarantee that Roger would be able to attend all of the classes. We have to attend every class. If you miss, you must make it up. I really don't see how we can do it right now. If he wins, we definitely will not be able to take the classes.

So, what's next? I have no idea. And that is why I know I need to surrender this. I know that I need to take care of my husband and my children and my home and wait for God to lead us down this path when the time is right, and when the right child is waiting for us. And for now...
I will wait for that child!

I was praying about this recently. I was telling God: "You know I have the best intentions! You know we have a great family who could easily adopt and love that child as our own. There are too many children who need homes! Why should we have to wait when these children are waiting and we are willing??? This doesn't make sense!!!" And, do you know what He said?
"Haven't I always taken care of you? I am taking care of them." And so I trust Him.

Totally Awesome Launch!!!

2009-11-16T15:07:00.004-05:00

2009-11-12T18:47:00.003-05:00

Ian--Forty Weeks Old

2009-11-12T18:40:00.004-05:00

I can't believe that my baby will be one in only 12 weeks! It's going too fast!!!

Ian has two teeth on the bottom and three on the top. He is almost a crawler!!! He has been getting on all fours for a few weeks, but today he learned to move his hands and knees a little. He will go a short distance and then scoot, or army crawl a little to get where he wants to go. I have been in no hurry for him to crawl. I know I am going to be even busier when this little guy is on the move!!! He has figured out how to go from his belly to sitting, but at first he would panic because he couldn't figure out how to get back to his belly. I think he has the hang of it now.

Ian--9 months old!!! (38 & 39 week updates)

2009-11-05T21:39:00.002-05:00

My sweet baby boy is 9 months old today!!! He had his well visit today and weighed 20 pounds, 4 ounces, and was 28 3/4 inches long. He has a bad cough and drippy nose, and a red throat, and he is cutting his fifth tooth...but he is still happy!

Ian loves to roll around on his bedroom floor, but he seems to be spending more time on his hands and knees the past few days. He hasn't figured out how to crawl, but he is so close. He is sitting up well and even figured out how to go from his belly, to hands and knees, to sitting a few days ago. He still isn't a really sturdy sitter, but he is definitely getting stronger.

Ian still gets 4-6oz bottles per day...breakfast, lunch, dinner, and bedtime. He eats some kind of baby cereal mixed with formula each morning (a small cup). For lunch he is still on stage 2 baby food and will eat 1.5 jars at each lunch and dinner. Every now and then he will eat both jars. We tried to give him stage 3 food last week, but it was too chunky and he got really choked. We'll wait a few more weeks to try it again.

Daily schedule: awake around 7:00, nap at 10, bottle at 11:30, lunch at 12:00, nap around 3:00, bottle at 4:30, dinner at 5:00, bottle at 7:30 and off to bed.

He is jabbering much more! He plays with his toys on his bedroom floor and makes all kinds of noises. He is a mommy's boy for now, but loves the entertainment he receives from his sister and brothers. He isn't lacking attention!

Ian has started showing his will. He has arched his back a few times as I was putting him in his car seat, and he does the same when he doesn't want his diaper changed. He settles down quickly, though. For the most part...he is a very happy little guy...and super cute, too!!!

Ian--Thirty-seven weeks

2009-10-27T21:10:00.005-04:00

My sweet boy is feeling better, but not great yet. He now has four teeth! It's so hard to be sick and teething at the same time.

He is trying so hard to get on his knees! He is sitting fairly well, but I still put a pillow behind him if I need to walk away. He's getting it, though!

I love this little guy so much! He is so sweet, and cuddly, and beautiful! I'm so grateful God placed him in my life. It is an honor to take care of him.

Ian--Thirty-six weeks

2009-10-15T21:48:00.004-04:00

This is my very sick little baby boy. He has been sick since last Saturday. He has had a high fever and terrible diarhea. I change his diapers frequently, but his bottom is red and hurting. It is getting a little better, but it cannot heal completely until the diarhea goes away. He also cut one of his top teeth this week and the second one will be through any day. So, he is sick and teething, which is a terrible combination. I have been keeping him on medicine every three hours, but that only brings his temperature down to 102.5, so I get up throughout the night to give him medicine because I don't want to see how far up it will go.

He drinks a bottle here and there, but he will not eat food. I really think he has Rotavirus. I really hope it goes away soon. He is so miserable that he won't even smile. The other day he went to sleep in my arms at 9:30 in the morning, and I had to wake him up at 2:30, so I could change him and get him to drink a bottle.

He is sitting up pretty well. He will still topple over, but he is doing well. He is also trying to get on his hands and knees. I'm in no hurry for him to crawl! I know how easy I have it right now with him being immobile!

Please pray for my sweet baby.

Ian--Thirty-four and Thirty-five weeks old

2009-10-08T21:21:00.003-04:00

Look at that little smiley face! How can you not smile while looking at him?! He is such a joyful baby!
Well, Ian's second bottom tooth popped through, and now his two top teeth should be through any day. His gums are so swollen and I know they are hurting because he has not been as happy the past two days. I feel so bad for him. I am trying to keep him on Tylenol or Ibuprofen during the day and teething tablets. I also have the little thing that he can hold on to and has a little mesh bag attached where I can put food, or grapes in for him to gnaw on. He loves it! I have put a banana, grapes, and ice in it so far.
Ian still gets a bottle four times a day, some kind of baby cereal at breakfast, one stage 2 jar of food at lunch (although he at a jar and a half tonight!), and then another jar at dinner. He likes sweet potatoes, squash, green beans, peas, and bananas, but still isn't crazy about peaches. I tried to give him some baby food that had a few small chunks in it, but he gagged, so he isn't ready for that yet.
Big news!!! He is sitting up fairly well. I would not sit him on the floor and walk away, but he is doing so much better. He has also been pushing up on his hands and trying to get his knees up under him, too. I'm in no hurry for him to crawl!

Ian--Thirty-three weeks

2009-09-24T10:42:00.004-04:00

Ian's second tooth should pop through in the next few weeks. I can see it under his gums. He chews on everything and drools more, but it doesn't seem to hurt too much.

He loves all of the different kinds of baby cereals! He enjoyed his green beans this week and tried sweet potatoes mixed with corn and loved it! I give him water mixed with a little bit of juice each day, so he doesn't get constipated and he loves it! He gets so excited when he sees his cup.

He is getting closer to sitting up, but certainly not steady yet. Maybe a few more weeks??? He rolls everywhere. He has begun pushing himself up on his arms, so I know that is the first step to crawling.

He is the happiest and most content baby in the world! I am grateful for his pleasant disposition!

He is still on the same eating and napping schedule and will probably stay there until he turns one year.

Ian--Thirty, Thirty-One and Thirty-Two weeks

2009-09-17T20:56:00.006-04:00

How did I get so far behind on my weekly updates???!!! I couldn't update while we were on vacation, and then I have had a hard time getting back on schedule since getting back home. I still need to give an update on our vacation, too! Soon!!!

Not a while lot has changed with Ian's schedule, so there isn't a lot to update anyway. This is kind of the point in "babyhood" where everything seems to run like clockwork.

Ian is now 7 months old. He smiles, giggles, squeals, cries a little, and brings joy to our entire family. He still only has one bottom tooth. We found out on the way home from vacation that he cannot have apples. Be very careful when you feed your baby fruits! Make sure you introduce one at a time and leave up to five days before trying another. Most of my kids have not been able to handle apples until after they are potty trained. I change my baby's diaper frequently, but apples completely burns Ian's bottom. It was terrible! We are big fans of Boudreax's Butt Paste (not sure about the spelling)! A and D ointment (not cream) is very good, too! Lesson learned...no apples for Ian!

Ian still doesn't like peaches, he isn't crazy about pears, and I am cautious to give him pears because I think my other kids had trouble with that, too. He ate green beans much better yesterday, and tried bananas, which he liked fairly well. Mostly, he loves squash and sweet potatoes and eats the equivalent of a small baby food jar at lunch and dinner.

He still gets four, six ounce bottles per day...7:30, 12:00, 4:30, and 7:30. He naps at 10:00 for about 1.5 hours and around 2:30 for 1.5 hours, and happily goes to bed after his bedtime bottle is gone. He doesn't always finish every bottle...he may have 1-2 ounces left. I use the extra (if there is extra) in the morning to mix with his baby cereal or baby oatmeal.

Ian rolls all over the place, puts everything in his mouth, but is still not sitting up. He is getting closer, but I think it may be another month. I don't see crawling coming anytime soon. Our pediatrician said he would progress at the latter end of normal because he is so chubby.

I adore my baby boy!!! I praise God for placing him in my life!

Decisions...

2009-09-16T22:02:00.002-04:00

Roger and I heard a sermon 3-4 years ago that convicted us, and really changed our hearts. We came to believe that we should trust God with the size of our family rather than telling Him how many children we would have. We knew that God would close the womb one way or another, but we did not know how, or when, or how many children we would be blessed to have.

God may be closing my womb, and I have to admit that I am really struggling with this. We knew after having Miles (our big 9 pound, 11 ounce boy!) that some damage had been done to my body. We were not told not to have anymore children, but that someday I would need to have surgery to fix things.

After having Ian we knew a little more damage was probably done, but we didn't know how much because I was seeing a new doctor. She also said that I would definitely need surgery in the future, but it wouldn't be wise to have surgery until I was done having children.

Recently I have felt things getting worse. I saw my doctor today and she confirmed that things are much worse than they were six months ago. She said I could have more children if I wanted to, but it would cause more damage, and that she will need to do a partial hysterectomy when I am done having children. Wow! That was not what I expected to hear at 35 years of age. She was, by no means, telling me that we should not have more children...for the record.

So...now Roger and I have a HUGE decision to make. Do we have one more? Is this the end of pregnancies for us? God...what do YOU want us to do??? I really thought I would have one more, so the thought of never giving birth to a precious baby is very sad for me.

I really am not looking for advice, so please do not tell me what you think I should do. This is between me and Roger and God. I don't say that to be rude, but I really don't want anyone to influence us as we try to pray and listen for God's will. I would be really grateful if you would pray for us, though. I wish we didn't have to make this decision, but we do, and I feel so much turmoil and emotion.

Whether we have another baby through our own birth, or not...God is not done growing our family. We hope to adopt in the future, so we know our family isn't done growing yet! It may be that God has given us an answer, by way of our doctor, and paving the way for the future to adopt. He didn't give us a passion and desire to adopt for no reason! Take a look at www.reecesrainbow.com and see the many reasons we hope to adopt!

Thank you for praying for us and with us!

Miles through the years...

2009-09-13T15:47:00.004-04:00

Happy Birthday to Miles!!!

2009-09-13T14:57:00.003-04:00

Miles came into my arms three years ago. He was HUGE!!! He weighed 9 pounds, 11 ounces! He had a triple chin, chubby thighs, and blonde, wavy hair. I was induced 12 days late, but had only gained 17 pounds, so we had no idea he would be so big!

Miles had health problems from the beginning. His breathing was raspy, he had apnea episodes at night, he spit up a lot...and then he was five weeks, vomiting every ounce of formula I was feeding him, and not breathing well. Roger and I spent the night awake Sunday evening because he was choking, and vomiting, and not breathing well. Roger told me to "get him to the doctor tomorrow and don't leave until they tell you what is wrong with him!" I had taken him to the doctor about every week, and was always told not to worry about it. Well, I took him the next morning, a different doctor asked me what was wrong as Miles vomited all over the room, he told me to take him to the hospital NOW, he was calling for an upper GI stat, so we wouldn't have to wait, then to wait at the hospital until he could talk to the radioligist and decide what they needed to do. I was so upset and scared! I thought he had a terrible case of reflux, but instead the doctor thought he may need surgery. So, I took him to the hospital, they took us back after a few minutes, the radioligist was formerly a pediatrician (huge plus for us), they did the upper GI, the radiologist told me what was wrong and drew a picture for one very distraught mommy, told me to wait there while he called our doctor, so they could see if they needed to admit him right then, or take him to the children's hospital in Orlando because he needed surgery NOW. I could not believe all of this was happening.

I ended up going to the pediatrician's office while they waited to hear from the children's hospital and then we were told to go straight to the ER to meet with the surgeon. Roger's aunt came over to stay with the kids, while Roger followed me to the hospital. We had to stop halfway there because Miles was vomiting so bad. I cleaned him up, and we hurried as fast as we could.

Miles was very dehydrated and only five weeks old, so they blew through both arms trying to get blood and an IV in. Then they blew through one foot, so the surgeon decided he would do it himself. He was able to get it in the other foot, but not very well, so they moved it to his head during surgery the following day.

Miles had a condition called Pyloric Stenosis. There is a muscle that helps move food from your stomach to your intestines. His muscle was becoming more and more enlarged, not allowing any food to pass through, so everthing was coming back up. Thankfully, surgery can correct this problem and then the baby is cured.

As we sat in the ER with the surgeon he became very concerned. He knew something more was wrong. He told the nurses, "Get an oxygen monitor, and apnea monitor on him now...I don't want to lose this baby tonight." Yikes! He heard what we had been hearing and telling the doctor about for weeks. I wanted to go back to our pediatrician and smack him!

Miles' monitors went off numerous times while we were there. He ended up being in the hospital for four days, which is not common for this condition. They couldn't figure out why his monitors continued alarming. They decided that he had reflux, too, which they believed would be cured when he healed from the surgery and then his breathing would become normal, so they sent us home. Well, he healed from the surgery, but his breathing did not become normal, and he continued having apnea episodes. Roger and I didn't sleep well for the first six months of his life. I continued telling our pediatrician about it, but he continued blowing me off.

Miles has had many other issues, too. He is a very unhappy little boy. His smiles are wonderful, but he has always been a very difficult child. For two and a half years he was on reflux medication. Just before he turned two I realized that a lot of his issues were sensory issues, so I talked to the pediatrician again and we began occupational therapy. Miles hated having his ears, eyes, mouth, face, and diaper area touched. He couldn't handle loud noises, so he was terrified (and this is no exaggeration!) of my hair dryer, the vacuum, the blender, trains, etc. He actually became much happier at 18 months when I took him off milk because of a fever. After two weeks of being off milk his eczema cleared up almost completely, and he laughed for the first time in his life. We missed out on a lot of giggles. We had no idea how miserable he was. We have since learned that he is allergic to milk and eggs.

I learned a valuable lesson...keep pushing!!! If you feel something is wrong with your child you keep pushing until you get some answers!!! Don't just trust the judgment of a doctor when you KNOW something is wrong with your child.

Here is the other thing I learned...when there is a family in need...whether they are sick, or have a child in the hospital...do everything you can to help that family. Bring them meals, babysit their kids, do something!!! I was in the hospital for four days with Miles and only a couple of people volunteered to help. I sat at the hospital in the surgery waiting room by myself as my newborn was in surgery because no one had offered to watch our other children, and my husband didn't want to ask. No one prepared meals for my family while I was gone. Not one single person from our church called to check on our precious baby boy. They knew about it, but no one did anything. I sat in the hospital hurt, lonely, scared, and wondering if anyone cared. Sad, but true. The only people who helped were Roger's mom (we love her dearly) and one of his wonderful aunts. We are so grateful for them!

I will admit that I was bitter for a while, but then God showed me the lesson I could learn from all of this. Yes, I have five kids, but I will make a meal, or clean someone's house, or watch their children, or whatever I can to help. I don't want anyone to feel the way I felt.

What can you do to help someone today?

So, off that soapbox and back to Miles!!! He is happier now than he used to be. He was potty trained, but now he is not, so we will get back to work on that tomorrow! He LOVES music! He loves to dance, and sing, and play his guitar. He loves Elmo and the Wiggles. He weighs 29 pounds, so he is a thin little guy. He sucks his thumb and is always looking for his "nother bwankie." He is smart! He gets overwhelmed easily, so we are still looking for coping strategies to help him. He knows his ABC's, Ephesians 6:1, and loves doing school with everyone each morning. He LOVES pizza and will eat 3-4 pieces, so guess what we are having for his birthday dinner! He just started eating cereal...he used to love cereal bars. He would probably drink a carton of chocolate soy milk every day if I would let him. He loves to take baths...and get dirty. He loves to swing. He has gorgeous blonde, wavy hair and beautiful blue eyes, and a big smile.

We love our Miles Augustine Shealy!!!

Ian--Twenty-nine weeks

2009-08-28T13:43:00.003-04:00

Little smiley is doing so well! He is happy, content, laid back, and so very sweet!

Not much has changed in the past week. He gets four, 6 ounce bottles a day and cereal, oatmeal, or baby food at mealtimes. He still doesn't like green beans. He doesn't really care for peaches, either. He didn't like apples at first, but seems to like them more now. He loves squash and sweet potatoes! He tried peas today and wasn't crazy about it, but still ate it. He may end up being a picky eater.

Ian--Twenty eight weeks

2009-08-20T14:31:00.003-04:00

I think Ian has another tooth working its way through, but it's not there yet. He is in his new schedule pretty well now...7:30--6 ounce bottle, small cup of rice ceral; 10:00--nap; 12:00--6 ounce bottle and small cup of food (he tried green beans this week, but is not too fond of them, he tried sweet potatoes on Sunday, but wasn't too fond of that either, he tried squash today and wasn't too fond of it at first, but seemed to like it after several spoonfuls); 2:30--nap, 4:30--6 ounce bottle; 5:30--dinner with the family...baby oatmeal; 7:30--6 ounce bottle and off to bed for the night.

I'll keep working on vegetables through the weekend, and then we'll probably move on to fruits next week.

Ian's favorite things: Mommy, Daddy, his doting sister and brothers, rice cereal and oatmeal, his bottle, his thumb, his TOES (loves them!).

Ian--Twenty-seven weeks

2009-08-13T17:47:00.004-04:00

Ian slept until 8:30 this morning! Wow! He was in bed before 8:00 last night, so I was shocked when I kept going in to check on him and he still wasn't awake.

So, here is his new schedule:

He typically gets a 6 ounce bottle at 7:30, then a small cup of baby cereal mixed with formula. He loves it! Then he takes a nap from 10:00-12:00. When he wakes up he gets another 6 ounce bottle. He gets another 6 ounce bottle between 2:30 and 3:00, and goes back to bed for another nap. He wakes up around 4:30 or 5:00, gets another 6 ounce bottle, then he gets a small cup of baby oatmeal when we eat dinner a little before 6:00. He gets a final, 8 ounce bottle at 7:30 and goes straight to bed.

I snapped a lot of green beans this afternoon and cooked them, so tomorrow I will mush them up in my handy chopper, and let Ian try them. Food...here we come!

Ian--Twenty five and Twenty six weeks old

2009-08-11T22:20:00.002-04:00

Yes, I am way behind! I wanted to update before I left town last week, but ran out of time, and then my mom's computer would not allow me to update for some reason. So, I may be late, but here it is...

A LOT has changed with my little monkey boy! He got his first tooth last Saturday! He started on baby cereal last Friday. He started baby oatmeal yesterday. He became really good at rolling from his back to his stomach while he and I were at my parents house. This always creates a problem because then he couldn't roll back over to his back, so he would wake up several times in the night, and I would have to get up and roll him back over. Thankfully, he became good at rolling from his stomach to his back today. Now, he sleeps sort of on his stomach and side while sucking his thumb. It's so cute!

Six month check-up yesterday!!! He weighed 19 pounds, 3 ounces. He measured 27.5 inches long. His head measured 17.25 inches. That puts him in the 80th %tile for height and weight, and the 50th for his head. He got two shots and the rotovirus liquid. He didn't even cry with the first shot, and calmed down very quickly after the second. He is a champ!

Jesus is the Light of the World!

2009-07-29T21:53:00.001-04:00

Our indian village...wigwams and teepee's

2009-07-29T21:51:00.003-04:00

Ian--Twenty four weeks + 3 days

2009-07-26T18:33:00.002-04:00

Ian tried to roll over for the first time this week. He can't get his one arm out from underneath, but he'll get there soon enough. He gets stuck, though, and then he gets upset because he can't make it back over to his back, but his sucking thumb is stuck underneath, so he is in a jam.

His head is less wobbly. I still have to hold his back pretty well when I hold him, or he might fall back, but he is definitely getting stronger.

His eating and napping schedule is still the same. I need to weigh him. He feels heavy! He is still a very happy baby. I think he may be getting a tooth. I think I feel a little bump on the bottom. We'll see soon!

Go Ian!!!

2009-07-26T16:57:00.002-04:00

Franklin's six year pictures

2009-07-24T21:28:00.001-04:00

2009-07-24T21:09:00.001-04:00

Six years ago today...

2009-07-24T20:41:00.003-04:00

Six years ago today this cute little guy was born around 7:30 pm. It was only a twelve hour labor, and one of my easiest labors. He was 7 lbs, 10 ounces. He screamed and screamed when they took him from me and put him in a bed to measure him. Roger walked over and quietly said in his ear, "It's okay, buddy. Daddy is here." He suddenly became silent. I had never seen anything like it. He knew who his daddy was. We had a doula during his labor and she was stunned, as well.

I was sick for the first 21 weeks of pregnancy. If I could eat a few pieces of cheddar cheese, and some saltines I could keep myself from vomiting...at least most of the time. I only gained 13 pounds during his pregnancy. I guess I was busy chasing Lauren!

Franklin's nickname was smiley when he was a baby. I often called him my "little politician." He would smile and say "hi" to everyone at the grocery store. He brought smiles to many faces! With the exception of when he first woke up in the morning (he was always too hungry to be happy), he was a very happy baby.

He rolled over at 5 months, sat up at 6 months, crawled at 8 months, and began walking at 14 months.

And now he is six! Franklin is my cuddler. He wants to be right next to me with his arms wrapped around me if I am on the sofa. He gives me kisses and hugs all throughout the day and constantly tells me he loves me. He is really well-behaved, and works so hard to have good manners. He is so thoughtful of others. Franklin is very sensitive. He can get his feelings hurt very easily and is quick to tear up.

I love Franklin so much! He is such a wonderful little boy! I truly believe he will grow up to be a wonderful, godly man, and I think he will be an amazing husband someday.

A wonderful dinner

2009-07-21T22:29:00.001-04:00

Fresh apples, bell peppers, blueberries, lettuce...and cheddar cheese. The kids were so excited!

Storytime--Lauren, King Ian, and friends

2009-07-21T22:26:00.002-04:00

So cute! I walked in Lauren's room to find her telling a story to "King Ian" and others. I love this little girl!

I don't know...I really don't know

2009-07-21T22:24:00.003-04:00

They stuffed their pants. They waddled around. They giggled a lot. I still don't know what they were. I love their imaginations!

School--Jamestown 1607

2009-07-21T22:22:00.003-04:00

We are really enjoying studying history. This is our Lincoln Log rendition of the first fort built in Jamestown. How fun?!

You are my sunshine!

2009-07-20T08:30:00.002-04:00

Cute little Ian

2009-07-20T08:28:00.003-04:00

Ian--Twenty three weeks + 2 days

2009-07-18T21:18:00.003-04:00

Ian's eating schedule is still the same. He is eating the same amount and at the same times. His pediatrician told me at his 4 month well visit that I needed to start him on cereal by six months. That probably is not going to happen. He is doing fine without it, and he and I are going to Kansas the first week of August, so I am going to try to hold off until we get back. He will be just over 6 months by the time I start it. It would be so much easier if he is only on a bottle than on a bottle and cereal, too. We'll be spending a lot of time at the hospital (my dad is having surgery), so I would much rather find a place to heat up a bottle than to figure out how and where to mix cereal...and the mess that ensues.

His nap schedule is changing. He eats around 7:30 am and is ready for a nap at 9:00. Then he wakes up and eats at 10:30, but has been staying awake until his next feeding, which I sometimes have to bump up to 1:00 because he is getting too tired, and then he sleeps until his next feeding at 4:30. Then he may stay awake until his last feeding, or he'll take a little nap from 6:45-7:15, I wake him up, get him ready for bed, feed him, and he goes right to sleep.

Lauren had him giggling a lot yesterday. I need to get it on video. She loves to play with him!

As you can see from this weeks pictures...he loves to swing, and his sweet sister provided him with an audience on his high chair tray that he really enjoyed.

Thank you, Aunt Cami, for the new high chair!!!

More fun with school!

2009-07-15T15:41:00.003-04:00

Today was a fun school day! Yesterday was, too! We have been talking about the discovery of America by the Vikings, where they came into contact with the Indians, and then the later discovery with Christopher Columbus. The kids are facinated by Indians, so we looked on line at what Indians look like, then the kids decided they wanted to dress like Indians...hence the crazy garb! And yes, Ari is wearing Lauren's tights...and no, I have no idea how that makes him an Indian! We also made the Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria out of foil and set sail in the bathroom.
I love teaching my children!!! (at least most of the time)

Daddy and the kids

2009-07-14T11:46:00.003-04:00

Watermelon!!!

2009-07-14T11:42:00.002-04:00

This is from our very own garden!!! We didn't think we were going to have watermelons, but slowly they came, and slowly they are being eaten by animals, bugs, and somehow splitting open.

BUT, here is one that made it!!! We'll be cutting it open later. This is so exciting!!!

Fun with school

2009-07-13T21:37:00.002-04:00

We finished our first week of our new school year last week. We ended our week hosting a tea party with two special guests...Grandma and Mrs. Bennett. We studied names last week, so I found the meanings of our guests names, and printed them neatly on paper. We also made cookies and printed everyone's names on their own cookie. It was a lot of fun!

Failure to launch

2009-07-12T21:28:00.003-04:00

The space shuttle and astronaut crew have been waiting to launch for quiet a while. It was another "failure to launch" because of the weather tonight. Roger's parents were parked with their RV down by the river, which is the BEST place to watch the launch, so we grabbed a few pizzas and met them at the river. The kids played in the water (I think it's nasty!), and had a really good time. The traffic was terrible. It didn't move for well over an hour, and it was raining, so we all went into the RV to wait. The kids were so tired, and kept asking when we could go home. They all fell asleep very quickly tonight!

Another blog

2009-07-10T22:18:00.002-04:00

I have started another blog! Does that sound crazy?! Seriously, I won't be updating it very often, but I think it will do a lot of good for others in the future.

I am part of a Yahoo group called Reese's Rainbow. It is full of a bunch of wonderful families who have adopted a child with special needs internationally, or they are in the process of adopting now. You can check out some of the buttons on the side of my blog to see some of the children who will hopefully be coming home soon. Click on the Reese's Rainbow button, too, and find out more about what led me even deeper into the desire to adopt.

Roger and I would love to adopt a child with special needs. We have prayed about it a lot and even began the process right before I found out I was pregnant with Ian. It is terribly expensive to adopt, so I have decided to let at least part of the proceeds of the sales of my baby wraps to go toward other's adoptions, and hopefully to our own in the future. I also hope to add some other things on my blog to sell, as well. I hope to add cute and trendy baby blankets, and burp cloths, and dresses for little girls. I'm really excited about this new opportunity.

Check out my new blog and spread the word!

http://lilarrowbabythings.blogspot.com/

Ian--Twenty two weeks

2009-07-09T21:02:00.002-04:00

Sweet Ian is doing very well! He loves to play with his toes! He wakes up at about 7:00 each morning. I never know where he is going to be in his crib because the past few mornings his head has been at the opposite end of the crib. He wakes up happy, happily takes his bottle, and then happily sits in his bouncy seat while watching Daddy unload the dishwasher and get breakfast together. He is ready for a nap at 9:00, so I either hold him while he falls asleep, put him in his swing, or lay him in bed. He eats again at 10:30, and then he has been staying awake the past few days until he is ready for his next bottle around 1:00 or 1:30, then he is ready for another nap. He generally sleeps until he is ready for his next bottle at 4:30, then he may or may not take a nap before his next bottle at 7:30 and then he is off to bed for the night.

He is such a little love!!!

Ian--Twenty one weeks + 1 day

2009-07-03T18:50:00.003-04:00

I got some Ian giggles today. I forgot to do his update yesterday, so I am late again! His schedule is changing a little. He is not sleeping as much as he was. There are times when he doesn't take a nap between bottles, but when he gets to his next bottle he is exhausted, so he will take a long nap. At some point he will move to the 10 and 3 nap schedule, but he isn't there yet. At night he gets his last bottle at 7:30, I put him in bed with a smile on his face, he goes right to sleep and wakes up around 7:00 (sometimes a little earlier) the next morning. When I go in to get him up I say, "Good morning!" and he smiles such a wonderful smile and his arms and legs wave around like crazy. He is just as excited to see me as I am to see him! He is such a happy little guy!

Just my thoughts

2009-07-01T20:38:00.002-04:00

If you read this you will experience the rare opportunity of "being inside my head." These are just my thoughts...it's the real me!

I'm anxious. The Bible says, "Be anxious for nothing." That is a tough one for me. I am a very planned, organized, and a somewhat Type A personality. I want to know what is going to happen, so I can plan and prepare for it. When I'm pregnant I find out if it is a boy or girl because it would drive me crazy to not have the crib bedding on and ready, and clothes washed, and everything appropriate for the correct gender.

What am I anxious about?

The campaign. I know it will be a lot of work, and I want Roger to win so badly, but I won't know until a long time from now. I don't like waiting to find out what will happen.

More children. I would love to have more children, but when? There isn't a "good" time with the election coming up, and if Roger wins then we will be living in Tallahasee part of the year, and I don't want to deliver in Tallahasee.

Adopting. I REALLY want to adopt! I don't want to wait. There are too many children waiting to have a family that can take care of them and love them. We're a family...we have lots of love...
let's do it! Roger isn't convinced that now is the time. I've asked him to pray more seriously and diligently about this. I don't even know how we would afford it, but I completely believe God would supply the money. He would have His work cut out for Him because we would need money for the adoption and a new van, too. Our van isn't big enough for six kids! God can do all things!!!

Money. I don't care that much about money, but it's tough for us right now...as it is for so many people.

My dad. He is having some health problems. We should have answers soon, but at the moment it is all up in the air. He's in Kansas. I'm in Florida. Not much I can do to help... That's hard, too.

School. We will be starting school again next week. It will be fine once we get started, but it is a lot of work to get to the starting point. I have to get everything together, figure out the best schedule for us, and figure out our new curriculum. I will feel much better when I figure it all out and have a plan.

It's stressing me out a little just to type all of this out. I'm usually not a very stressed-out kind of person, but I feel like there are so many things to think about all at one time, so I feel a little overwhelmed.

"Pray...and let God worry."--Martin Luther
I liked this quote even though I know God doesn't worry. I think the true point is to pray and leave it at the feet of Jesus, and let Him lift the burden. I need to trust in God's timing and His perfect will, too. Being a planner, I often try to take the reins when I don't feel like I am getting my way, or when things are happening more slowly than I desire.

On a positive note...it is when I feel overwhelmed that I learn to draw closer to God, lean on Him, have increased faith, and learn to trust and obey God.

I won an award!!!

2009-06-29T22:21:00.002-04:00

This is the award I won from my friend Peggy. It is a wonderful feeling to know that you can "Encourage and Inspire" someone just by being YOU! Thank you, Peggy! I am truly honored.

Ian--Twenty weeks + 4 days

2009-06-29T09:49:00.002-04:00

I'm behind on Ian's weekly update again! Better late than never, right?!

I had the opportunity to watch our little friend, Angelena, Friday morning. She is 10 days younger than Ian. I put them on a blanket on the floor together and Ian tried to grab her hair, cheek, shirt, and eventually found her hand. They were both so good, and I really enjoyed having an extra baby (especially a baby girl!) in the house for a few hours!

Ian is on the same schedule. He still eats every three hours, sleeps 11-12 hours at night, drinks 6 ounces, except he gets 7 ounces for his last bottle, smiles often, coos a lot, and remains a very pleasant baby.

New things...He found his toes!!! I love it when babies find their toes. He is beginning to laugh a little, too. He is officially in 6-12 month clothes, but doesn't have much room in them. He is one big boy!!!

Exhausted?

2009-06-25T17:33:00.003-04:00

I guess VBS is wearing Ari out! This is the way he fell asleep this afternoon while watching a movie. I think everyone will be going to bed early tonight.

What two year olds will do when mom steps out...

2009-06-23T21:24:00.002-04:00

I went out to the garage to get something, then Roger called me over to see our watermelons, so I walked over to see them, and when I came back inside I heard water running, and found a certain two year old in the bathroom sink with no underwear, faucet running, and brushing his teeth. This little boy leaves me speechless...

A wee little update

2009-06-22T19:52:00.002-04:00

Ian feels better!!! Praise the Lord!

Franklin: Moooooooommmmmm!!! I see a spider!!!
Me: Okay, I'll be there in a minute.
Franklin: That's okay, Mom. I just killed it with my hand. Here it is!
Ewwww....

Ari has an imaginary friend...I think. His name is John. Hmmmm...

Lauren: Mom, may I hold Ian. 1 minute later...Mom, would you pleeeeease take this big boy out of my arms? :-)

Miles: "May I have more chocolate soy milk, pweeze?" A constant question...

Lauren, Franklin and Ari started VBS this week. They loved it today. Lauren and Franklin have been talking about the songs with sign language they learned all day.

We had a second showing on our house today. They are deciding between our house and a new house. I have no idea what the difference is between the two. Our house is only 3 years old and in great condition. I'll have to post some pictures soon. We are praying HARD that it will sell!

I am sick...again. Actually, I have never been completely well. I keep getting different viruses. This is getting so old! It's kind of depressing.

Roger is already getting busy going to meetings that will help further his campaign. He won't get too busy yet, but that will come.

I'm off to take a break with a nice glass of water...

Ian--Nineteen Weeks Old + 2 days

2009-06-20T21:15:00.002-04:00

Look at the first picture of Ian's sad face. That is the face he has had a lot the past week. He is usually such a happy little guy...but not right now. He had a fever for three days this week and it even got to 103.5. His tummy has been hurting him and I have been changing some nasty diapers. I think he may have a stomach virus. He was up at 5:00 this morning and was not too happy. I cuddled him and gave him a bottle and he went back to sleep. I feel so bad for him. It's so hard when they can't tell you what is wrong, so you don't know what to do to help them.

He's been having a hard time taking naps, as well.

On another note...Ian went to the beach for the first time Thursday. He was fussy, so he didn't care about it, but at least he was there. My friend, Nicole, who I grew up with was vacationing in Daytona Beach, so we met up with her and her husband and their families and had a fun time on the beach.

Poor little Ian...:-(

Free Clippies, and a new friend, too!

2009-06-19T15:45:00.002-04:00

I love my new friend, Elisa! I grew up with her husband, who was more like a brother then a friend...fighting and all! I'm so glad Johnny married Elisa! She is a true sweetheart!

Hop on over to her blog (seabafive.blogspot.com) to get to know her and for the chance to win some hair clips for the favorite little girl in your life. She does a fabulous job on her clips!!! They are the cutest I've seen, and far better than any store clips I've seen!

You're the best, Elisa!!!

Our Big Announcement

2009-06-17T11:12:00.002-04:00

ROGER IS RUNNING FOR STATE HOUSE REPRESENTATIVE!!! WE ARE SO EXCITED!!!

My little stair steps

2009-06-16T21:53:00.001-04:00

Pictures!

2009-06-16T21:49:00.003-04:00

The Fruits/Vegetables of our labor

2009-06-16T21:44:00.002-04:00

Roger planted a garden this year. It was our first garden! We have tomatoes, okra, cucumbers, carrots, and green beans. We've tried growing canteloupe and watermelon, but didn't have enough bees around to pollinate for fruit production. Our entire family has had so much fun watching it grow and picking new vegetables each day. We have enjoyed our home-grown vegetables every night for dinner. We've nearly become vegetarians recently!!! We love it!

A lesson learned

2009-06-14T21:49:00.002-04:00

I am sick...very sick. It started last Tuesday with a scratchy throat, then a sore throat, then an extremely sore throat that hurt so bad I couldn't eat anything. I have lost 4 pounds in the last week. It wasn't getting any better, so I went to a walk-in clinic this morning. (Roger was going to take the kids to church this morning, except Ian, but Franklin began vomiting. He has been fine the rest of the day.) I was at the clinic at 8:30, but found out it didn't open until nine. There were already 5 men standing at the front door smoking, so I waited in the van. Then, more and more cars drove up, so I decided to get in line. When they opened the doors at 9:00 there were 17 people waiting to get in. Crazy!
Hang in there with me...the "lesson learned" is coming...
I get to the receptionist who is not very friendly, and some would say is not even nice. I was kind and polite, which most people are probably not, since they are waiting in a long line and know that it may be a few hours before they see the doctor. I listened and watched her as she handled each patient that walked in the door. She wasn't nice to anyone...sadly.
(on a side note: I have a bacterial infection in the glands in my neck, and a viral infection in my throat that has caused several ulcers to form on my throat, and in the back of my mouth and tongue. My throat hurts so bad that I still can't eat anything other than jello. It's miserable!)
On with the story:
Next, I went to CVS to get a prescription filled. The ladies at the pharmacy were pleasant, but business-like. I sat next to the pharmacy waiting for my prescription to be filled when an older black gentleman came by in his motorized wheel chair. He didn't look like a man of means. He had on dirty, tattered pants and an old shirt. He wasn't wearing shoes, but had on white socks. His feet looked large. He hadn't shaved in days, nor had he probably showered. BUT, this is where the lesson comes in...As he drove by me to go to the bathroom and looked me straight in the eyes, and with pure kindness, love, and compassion he said, "I sure hope you feel better soon," and then he drove by. This was a person that I probably would not have looked at twice, but he didn't look above or below me...he looked into my soul and I could feel his compassion. He was kind...to me. He didn't ignore me because I was young, or a woman, or sick, or white...
I was just another person he felt compassion for. Wow! That really made me think. How often do I treat people better because they look like they have more money, or they are pretty, or smell good, or seem really nice...not just because they are a person.
Then I remembered this story...(I know this is long, but keep reading because it may be a "lesson learned" for you, too!)
At a community college there was a really long line for admissions. Students were getting frustrated at how long they had been standing there...over an hour. A gentleman that worked for the college saw how long the line was and wondered why it was moving so slowly and how long it was taking to get through, so he decided to get in line and wait with the students. After an hour of waiting he finally got to the front of the line where the young receptionist was speaking on her cell phone while doing her job. When she looked up and saw who was next she was completely embarrassed, got off the phone immediately, and said, "Oh, Dr. King (President of the college) I'm so sorry. I didn't know you were waiting in line. What can I do for you?" He smiled and said, "You can treat everyone as though they are Dr. King." He calmly walked away.
Do you get that? The Bible tells us that we are to treat everyone as better than ourselves. Oh, how I miserably fail at times. I was reminded this morning. Lesson learned...again.

Ian--Eighteen Weeks Old

2009-06-11T21:24:00.002-04:00

My little sleeping chubby-cheeked beauty is Eighteen Weeks Old. He had his four month check-up this afternoon and was so good and smiley until they gave him two shots and a liquid to drink. Poor baby! I hate shots!

So, as for his stats...He is one BIG boy! He weighed 17 pounds, and was 26 inches. That puts him in the 90th percentile for height and weight. No wonder he is growing out of his 3-6 month pj's.

He is on the same schedule...He gets his first bottle between 7-7:30 each morning and then every three hours until his last bottle at 7:30 at night. He goes right to sleep when I put him in bed.

We do have something new to share this week...Ian is a thumb sucker! It's cute! I never thought I would say that, but it really is. Actually, I swore I would never have a thumb sucker, but Lauren started sucking her thumb at 7-8 weeks. I tried to cover her hands, but she would find a way to uncover them. I put her in a gown that had the hands covered, but she worked her entire body out of the gown until it was over her face. After the second time she did that I was too concerned about her safety and decided she could suck her thumb. Franklin was a pacifier baby until I took it away at 11 months, Ari sucks on his tongue when he gets tired, Miles is a thumb sucker, and now I have my third thumb sucker...Never say never!

Since Ian is doing so well the doctor told me I have up until 6 months to start him on solids. Thankfully, he is very relaxed in this area and didn't pressure me to start right away. Even if he had pressured me I still would have waited. Ian is fine, and it adds more work to my day to feed cereal, so I will wait.

Ian--Seventeen Weeks (one day before 4 months!)

2009-06-04T11:51:00.002-04:00

Ian will be four months old tomorrow! I weighed him on a friend's baby scale yesterday and he weighed a little over 16 pounds. Sixteen pounds???!!! Oh my!

He still eats 6-7 ounces every 3-3.5 hours during the day. He drinks his last bottle at 7:30, goes to bed, and gets up around 7:00 (sometimes a little earlier and sometimes a little later) in the morning.

Miles was ready to move to a big bed, so I set up the bunkbeds in Lauren's room on Tuesday, moved the crib mattress up for Ian, switched clothes to the appropriate rooms, and did the big switcheroo! Ian loves his crib and sleeps very well in this "new" room. Miles is really happy, with his new bed, too!

Ari's birthday party

2009-05-29T09:53:00.004-04:00

Ari wanted a Thomas birthday again this year. He also wanted to go on a picnic with mommy and daddy, so I left Lauren, Franklin, and Miles with their grandma, took Ari to Target, so he could spend his birthday money, picked up a pizza and Coke (this is very special!), and headed to the park. He had so much fun! We did, too!

Pictures!!!

2009-05-29T09:45:00.002-04:00

More of Ari

2009-05-29T09:11:00.003-04:00

Ari's four year photo shoot

2009-05-29T09:05:00.004-04:00

Ian--Sixteen Weeks

2009-05-28T21:01:00.003-04:00

My little chubbers is sixteen weeks old! He is a happy and content little baby. He knows how to tell me when he is hungry, tired, or wants to cuddle...he even has tears sometimes. :-(

He loves to be in his swing. He is becoming more active. When I walk in his room to get him in the morning, or after naps he smiles and his arms and legs go crazy. It is so cute! I still have to support his head when I pick him up, but when I hold him he supports his own head, and doesn't bobble as much anymore (a little still, though).

He drinks a bottle at 7:30 am (sometimes a little earlier), 10:30, 1:30, 4:30, and then 7:30 pm and goes to bed. He goes to sleep quickly when he goes to bed for naps and at night...he doesn't even fuss. He typically goes to sleep about 1.5 hours before it is time for him to eat again and wakes up when it is time to eat. Sometimes I will give him an extra 30 minutes to sleep if he is still sleeping when it is time for him to eat. There have been a few times in the past week that he wasn't too tired between feedings, but then would take a long nap at some point in the day. I watch his cues and go from there.

Ian--Fifteen Weeks

2009-05-28T20:40:00.003-04:00

Last week was busy, so I didn't do Ian's weekly update. The main reason I do a weekly update is to keep a journal for myself, and for any other new moms who may want to know what their baby may be doing at certain weeks and months. And, if we have another baby I can go back and read about Ian as a reminder of what I was doing...and what he was doing.

Ian spent his first night in a hotel on his fifteen week birthday. Roger and I spent a night in Orlando and went to the homeschool conference. I don't think we have had a night away since I was pregnant with Franklin...that was 6 years ago! Ian did pretty well. I learned that he won't drink a bottle unless it is warm, so I had to figure out ways to get his water warm throughout the night and following day. He had a hard time going to sleep in his hotel crib, but after I warmed another bottle he finally drifted off to sleep and slept until after 8:00 the next morning. I carried him in my baby wrap during the conference, so he got a lot of mommy cuddle time, and comfy naps.

Now, onto where he actually is today...Sixteen weeks!

Ari update...

2009-05-26T10:06:00.002-04:00

My sweet little Ari is 4 today! I was induced 9 days late with Ari. It was a long 15.5 hour labor and we had many friends and family at the hospital to witness his birth. Labor stalled around 7:30 pm, so I began getting Pitocin, which kicked things up a notch. Ari was born around 11:30 pm and weighed 7 pounds, 11 ounces.

Ari has the biggest, brightest smile of anyone I know. His smile lights up his entire face. He is a very handsome little boy and looks a lot like my dad and his family.

Ari is a pretty happy-go-lucky kind of kid. He will play what everyone else is playing and doesn't have a strong opinion. He is so laid back that we sometimes have to give him a little extra push.

His favorite food is chicken legs. He doesn't have a favorite TV show, and he isn't really into anything special. He LOVES his bears (blue bear and grandma bear), his bunny, and especially his blankies!!! He sucks on his tongue when he gets tired...he has done that since he was a little baby. Ari is a thin boy weighing only 35 pounds. He is a very special boy!

We love you so much Ari! You are a wonderful, precious gift! Keep smiling!

Happy 4th Birthday to Ari!!!

2009-05-26T09:32:00.004-04:00

Happy Birthday to Ari!!!

2009-05-26T09:09:00.004-04:00

Sickness abounds...

2009-05-18T17:24:00.002-04:00

Lauren was sick last week with a sore throat, fever, earache, and pink eye. (Thurs-Thurs)
Then...Ari got pink eye. (Wed)
Then...Ari got a sore throat...and Franklin, too. (Sat)
Then...Miles got pink eye.(Sun)
Then...Franklin got an earache and still has a sore throat...and Ari's throat still hurts, too, and his pink eye is back.(Mon)
Then...Lauren said her throat hurts again.(Mon)
Then...who knows?

Roger and I are supposed to go out of town (with Ian!) this Thursday for the night...hmmm...
maybe not. (?)

MIles is officially potty trained!!!

2009-05-18T17:17:00.002-04:00

I am amazed that Miles is completely potty trained...through the day...and night!!! He did it in a little less than a week! He pood on the toilet for the first time yesterday, so we partied hard! We went to 7-11 for an Icee!!! Ari stood on one side of the toilet and said, "That's so great Miles. I'm so proud of you!" Franklin stood on the other side of the toilet and said, "Good job, Miles. I'm so proud of you!" What great little boys I have?! And when he did it again today Ari was there to congratulate him again by saying, "That's awesome, Miles! You're doing such a great job!" Gotta love Ari! Good job, Miles!!!

"This is the life..." ~ Lauren

2009-05-16T21:41:00.001-04:00

Miles...a success story...almost!

2009-05-16T21:39:00.002-04:00

Miles did really well again today. He actually woke up dry this morning!!! I was completely shocked! He still didn't poo on the toilet, which really bothered him. I think that is a good thing because it may encourage him to go on the toilet next time! He also did not make it through his nap dry, but I'm okay with that. Other than those two incidences he told me every time he had to go potty. Go Miles!!!

Potty training...success?

2009-05-15T15:09:00.002-04:00

I have to admit that Miles is doing much better potty training than I expected. (I just heard Ari say, "I'm so proud of you for going potty on the toilet!" How great is that?!) We just started on Monday. He didn't go on the toilet once! Then Tuesday came and he finally went on the toilet once. Then Wednesday...he went on the toilet several times, but still had a few accidents. He has had a hard time releasing once he sits on the toilet. Yesterday, he did pretty well, but still some accidents and then he went to bed...Franklin came out of his room and said, "Mom, Miles is yelling for you. He needs to go potty." I went to get him out of his crib and he went straight to the toilet, went potty right away, and then went right back to bed. I was shocked!

And then today...I could not be more surprised by this little guy. He has pottied in the toilet every time today!!! AND, I don't even have to ask him if he needs to go. He tells me when he needs to go potty! I'm amazed! Now, if I can just get him to poo on the toilet. Maybe tomorrow?

Ian--Fourteen Weeks

2009-05-14T20:07:00.003-04:00

My baby is 14 weeks! I wanted to show him in pictures with two of his favorite things. He loves to lay in his bed and look at his mobile. He also loves the swing we borrowed from a cousin. He sits and coos and smiles at the mobile on the swing and at some fabric on the side of the swing.

A lot has changed in the last week. He drinks about 6 ounces every three hours during the day. He doesn't always finish his bottle and thrusts the bottle out with his tongue when he is done. He gets his last bottle at 7:30 pm, goes straight to bed (he prefers to go to bed rather than me rocking him), and he sleeps until some time after 7:00 the next morning. That's right...he is sleeping about 12 hours every night...give or take a half hour. He wakes up with a smile on his face and goes to bed with a smile on his face. He is quite the little prince!

It's Potty Time

2009-05-13T21:57:00.004-04:00

This is what we do while we wait for Miles to go potty on the toilet. We sing and read books, too! I have to do whatever I can to keep him on the toilet until he goes. He has been holding it for a long time and even stayed dry for 2.5 hours during his nap this afternoon! We just finished our third day of potty training, and I think he is going to get it! He did much better today, but still leaves his mark here and there, and left a big mark in the bath tub today...yuck! If things keep going the way they have the past few days Miles may end up being my easiest boy to potty train, which would be nice since he has been the most difficult in every other area! He's a cutie!