my week

Well, my week is quickly drawing to a close. I go pick up Alyssa & Matthew tomorrow morning. How has my week been? Well, busy. Definitely busy. While I did get to go on walks with Josh, sit on the floor and just play with Josh & spend some time digitally scrapbooking I also spent much time organizing, running errands and doing a million other little things that I have been putting off around the house (including cleaning out the frig - I found a bag of "lettuce" hidden behind some things - can you say YUCK!).

I feel much more organized. I know my living room will be a wreck by the end of the day tomorrow but my closets are cleaned out and I know where pretty much everything is. This afternoon I am taking 3 bags of clothes - mostly mine - and a bag of toys (don't tell the kids) to Goodwill. I still have the kids' clothes to go through but that's for another day!

Another accomplishment, I got Josh's picture taken at Sears this week. Finally! The poor kid is 15 months old and hasn't had a professional picture taken since he was 6 months old. He probably doesn't mind, but I do and so does my mom. So now we'll all be happy. We went to Sears and they did great. Josh got to sit and stand on the floor instead of up on a table and that made it so much more relaxing!

Of course, as I sit here, I still have many things to do left on my list. Part of the problem is that I kept adding to the list as the week went on. I'm super tired because I stayed up too late last night and Josh decided 5am was a GREAT time to wake up this morning but I feel good. It's been a good week. I was able to take time to think up creative stuff for MOPS - even amazed myself with the ideas that I came up with this week with a little less interruptions and some time to think (thanks God!).

Now I'm ready to go get Alyssa & Matthew. I do miss them. It sounds like they have had an absolute amazing week swimming every day, playing with kids their age and of course 2 wonderful grandparents who love them to pieces (although my mom did come down with the stomach flu last night - sorry mom!). I don't know if my kids are going to be ready to come home but fortunately for them they get to go back in a week for another round - this time with their cousins & us too!

I'm ready for some hugs and kisses!

Fashion vs. Function

Here's the debate we're having in our house right now. I redid the bathroom a couple of weeks ago and found this really cute area rug - just perfect for the room and did I say CUTE? The problem with it is that it doesn't have rubber on it's underside so it slips and slides everywhere.

Because it's cute and goes so nicely, I have been overlooking this issue and just dealing with it. However, my husband, being a guy and more into function vs. fashion doesn't like it. He also doesn't like that it's not as cushy as our old rug. So, we've agreed to figure out a way to put something underneath it so that it won't slide around and try that (because we have small kids and I'd rather that they not take a tumble with the slippery rug I've agreed to this) and I'm still hopeful to have my cute rug in front of the sink. The issue has caused us to discuss fashion vs. function and how it seems women side more on the side of fashion and will put up with the imperfections if it's cute and men side way more on the side of function and don't really care what it looks like if it works (although cute is a bonus).

Right now the old rug is back and the new rug is over by the shower. Not as cute but more functional. Sigh...

Aaaah! A little peace and quiet!

Yes, it has been pretty peaceful at our house today. Why? Because Alyssa & Matthew are at my parent's house for the week. We still have Joshua at home but he's pretty quiet, if not a little lost without his brother and sister around. I have tons of projects this week so don't worry about me not knowing what to do with my time. Currently I am cleaning & rearranging 5 closets, 2 bookshelves & 1 cabinet - all at the same time. It's called massive rearranging, getting ready for homeschooling and just moving all the games to one location, craft stuff to one location, etc... instead of having a little bit of everything everywhere. I love organizing things so it's actually kind of fun! :-) My house probably looks messier at this moment than when Alyssa & Matt are home...

By Friday I will be ready for some bigs hugs, and a lot of noise but it's a nice respite for a few days. Oh, did I mention that Alyssa had the stomach flu last night (her first night at grandma & grandpa's)? Bummer! I actually had it on Friday night but I had hoped it was just something I ate. I'm praying my mom doesn't get it! My mom was so sweet to Alyssa and took excellent care of her and by this morning she over it and perky as could be.

Sorry mom!

first steps

He took his first steps today! First with Alyssa and I and then this afternoon with all of us. It'll be awhile before he's walking everywhere but he's on his way!

Alyssa the infomercial

Lately Alyssa has been watching Qubo. It's a station we didn't have until we got a digital television. It's a kids channel with mostly okay cartoons (they're actually old ones like Lambchop, Babar, Rupert but she likes them because they're all new) but every 15 minutes they have infomercials. Not for kids stuff but for things like the swivel sweeper, pancake puff pan, the cube thing where you vacuum out all the air, etc...

After watching this for a while, I find Alyssa going around doing infomercials to herself. The other day she got out our swivel sweeper and began "demonstrating" it for her audience. I hear her saying things like "$14.99 plus shipping & handling, can you handle shipping and handling?" She talks in shorts sentences and in a certain infomercially voice just like they do on the infomercials and sells things like her pens, dolls and I don't know what else. Now she is saying "you can stack them anywhere, everywhere. even in your purse..." Not sure what she's selling right now.

Not sure if I find it hillarious or scary... I'm trying to encourage her to watch less Qubo and more TPT Kids (because if I have to watch Lambchop one more time I'm going to scream - so beware tomorrow morning at 6:30am!)...

my mission to love

This is what's been going around in my head this morning. Last night I had a conversation with my sister. We are trying to call each other every week to keep up with each other and it's been great!

She & her husband are amazing people. Parents of 4 with their oldest son a special needs kid with a rich, deep faith in Christ. I am always amazed at the way they have grown closer in spite of a lot of difficult issues facing them at times. They just celebrated their 12th year of marriage and she's been a huge supporter of me and my family over the years. I was telling my sister that I am sure God is going to use her life & experiences to touch others (if he hasn't already) - it wouldn't surprise me if she either wrote a book or began speaking to others someday about how God has been there for her and her family & to bring hope to others struggling with special needs kids or really, life in general. She wrote a blog for a friend of hers a year or two back and it was powerful (if you ever want to know what a mom of a special needs kid is thinking, you should check it out - maybe I can figure out how to link to it someday).

Anyway, what is riling me up this morning is the fact that it's hard to watch them struggle sometimes. As she has told me, she would do anything to help her son find ways to succeed & be part of society. In trying to do that, she has found rejection. I won't go into details, it's not my story to tell, but it is hard to see people who love Christ, be so unloving to each other. Much of it, I'm afraid, stems from fear of the unknown. Knowing my nephew is a special needs kid and having seen him at his worst (and it can be pretty bad), the answer was a resounding, hurtful "no." I get it, but it doesn't make it any easier to hear about.

What it makes me realize is do I do that to others with similar issues? I' don't think I've ever been in a position to say no to someone but I'm sure I've judged kids based on the outward behavior I've seen and thought to myself, "I want to steer clear of them." Honestly, in years past, that's been my thoughts with my own nephew at times. Purely not understanding what was going on in his head & why he couldn't just stop behaving that way if he really wanted to.

What I'm realizing with Caleb is that while yes, he has some issues & can make some choices about his behavior, much of his melt-downs & behavioral issues are not his choice and his parents are doing EVERYTHING they can to find ways to change the behavior. If he could choose, he would choose to behave well and to get along with people. Over the past year God has been giving me a small understanding of what's going on with Caleb which gives me greater compassion and patience for him.

How many kids have I seen act up and it isn't a case of bad parenting but of a neurological imbalance? How many parents in the grocery store, playground, etc... do I need to stop judging and just love and support?

God, help me to be more loving to the moms & dads I see around me. Help me to be supportive and understanding instead of critical and rude. And help Caleb find his places to succeed and excel and most of all to know Your love for Him.

My painting project

Normally my husband doesn't let me touch the paintbrushes when it comes to house projects. Usually I take the kids and he takes on the painting but today he let me paint the bathroom. Maybe it's because it's probably the toughest room to paint. Maybe because the last time he let me paint it (back before we were married) I kinda didn't do such a great job - hence no more painting for Kristie - and he wanted me to have another shot. Maybe because he just painted the kitchen. Regardless, today was my day to paint.

During the process I only had to say "if you don't like how I'm doing it, do it yourself" twice. I got a "you did fine" when I was done . He came in at the end and found all the paint drops I left behind - I told him he was in charge of clean-up. Alyssa said that daddy does a better job because when he's done painting he doesn't have paint all over him and when I was finished, I did. Still do. Matthew was my big supporter. He came in twice and told me I was doing a great job. Coulda melted my heart. After everything was put up, Alyssa said she really really liked it and I think even Gregg is thinking it was a good change. And most importantly, I like it - it is more cheery...

Here's before...

And after...

My Boys

Just had to put this cute pic of my boys on...

My baby got a buzz cut!

He needed a hair cut - I know he did! For the summer he REALLY needed less hair (he's really been struggling with heat rash, especially this week). We've been talking about doing it for weeks and finally today was the day. Gregg cut my baby's hair, not just a little but a couple of inches came off! It was necessary but I really liked his hair the way it was so while it's still cute I'm a little sad today that my baby is growing up...


BEFORE: This picture was taken yesterday (yes, he's sitting in the dishwasher)...



AFTER: This is today...

I said yes?!!

I have been involved in MOPS for the last 3 years. This last year I served as a discussion group leader and was planning to do that again next year. Last week I got a call from a fellow MOPS leader who asked if I would consider being a co-leader of our MOPS group this fall (we still didn't have a leader but we have excellent mentors who have been stepping in and helping with the planning so far).

Well, after much prayer, talking to anyone who would listen (I tried calling Jenn but you were out), I said yes today. One of the big "sticking" points so to speak was that steering meetings are usually in the evenings & I was going to need a babysitter in order to attend. I actually found someone willing to come and watch the kids once a month so I can attend those meetings.

At this point I'm just praying that God will help me be what is needed for this position and that I will be an encourager for the rest of steering and for Cara, my co-leader. I'm really hoping that I will look back on this year and that this will be an unexpected blessing, that God will stretch me but that also He will help me be a good mom & homeschool teacher along with a good MOPS Co-coordinator.

And yes, this came up the day after I wrote my previous blog about wanting to find joy in my day to day life & really savor my kids. Hmmm...

Hide & Seek

We seem to be playing hide and seek a lot at our house lately. Not the kind where you look for hiding children but the kind where you look aimlessly for hidden stuff!

First, we lost a library CD, the Little Mermaid. We never listened to it, it just...disappeared. Finally, after endless searches & prayers to God asking Him to show me where in the world it was, the 30 day late period went by and we were charged for the CD & processing fee - over $25. I paid it on Monday and you guessed it, on Thursday I found the CD back. Not in some strange, out of the way place, mind you. Actually in a spot you would think I would've looked in at least 10 times in the last month. Really baffling! Thankfully I will get my money back for the CD but not the processing fee.

Second, in the last few weeks we lost the case to a library DVD. Thankfully we had the DVD but I had no idea where the case went. The kids like to play library with our DVDs downstairs so I had a feeling it was down there but even after moving EVERYTHING around down there, I couldn't find it. I asked at the library and the case only cost $2.50 to replace but of course there was a processing fee & I was going to have to pay for stickers so it was going to be probably $15 to replace it. Ugh! On top of the other money I had to pay, I was not looking forward to having to pay MORE money! It's been overdue the last week but I've just kept looking and thank God! yesterday I went downstairs one more time to look around, opened the right drawer and FOUND IT! (Note, there will be no more playing "library" with library dvds!).

Third and most devastating, at least to my husband, we misplaced our remote for our tv sometime on Friday and couldn't find it ALL DAY yesterday (you know how frustrating that is, you actually have to get up to change the channel). We tipped the couch over countless times, looking in cupboards, in the bookbin, even looked in the garbage but absolutely couldn't find it. I was starting to think we were going to have to buy a new one but I thought I'd go clean Matt's room and see what I could find. Yep, behind the changing table buried in stuffed animals, there it was! We need one of those remotes where you can push a button on the tv & the remote starts beeping. That's the only way we don't lose our phone.

I am happy to report that at this present time we do not have anything missing that I know of, yet.

Soccer Highlights

Alyssa & Matt have been in soccer this summer. Here are some pics of them. Alyssa actually played a "real" game tonight. Very cute to watch this swarm of kids all following the ball. I taped it so Gregg could watch it. Hopefully he'll be kind to the one taping as I think part of the time I was taping the sky but he'll get the idea...



Matt wanted to do soccer after he saw Alyssa's class so we signed him up. He does fine but about half-way through he tends to sit down... a lot. He's 3. Today he said his legs were tired and he didn't do much. I think he does better when Gregg takes him - I think he'll be taking him from now on!

I'm in trouble!

Does this picture need an explanation? Nothing is safe anymore! The step stool was already in that position but yes, he did climb up all by himself! Aaaah!

Missing the moments

God has been teaching me something recently. I like my life, really. I have a great family, great husband, great kids, great life. Overall I'd say very blessed. However, I've noticed over the past months that I don't seem to have a lot of joy in my day to day, everyday life moments. This spring I realized that I don't laugh as much with my kids as I'd like. I seem to have this perpetual frown on my face as I tell them, once again, to stop doing that to your brother/sister! I don't like that and I want to change but my question has been for a while now, how do I? How do I find joy in the daily routine of little ones & smelly diapers? How do I focus on God and what He's doing in our lives in little ways when life seems to be going by me at warp speed and everyone needs something right at this very moment?

I don't have near all the answers but God has started to point out a few things in my life, that are part of the lack of joy & contentment in my life. First, he brought a Beth Moore Bible study on Believing God my way. From that I've started looking up all the verses on joy in my concordance, reading the passage surrounding it and writing down anything that stands out regarding joy & being joyful. Second, I have begun reading a book (given to me by my friend Carolyn) called Balance That Works When Life Doesn't by Susie Larson. I'm only through chapter 2 but it's already given me a nugget of truth I needed to hear that just may be a crucial key to me living more of a joy-filled life.

In her book she quotes something God was saying to her at one time. God was saying to her, "You are so focused on your destination that you are only thinking about getting there...take a moment to enjoy it [life]. You're missing so much of the journey because your mind is on the destination."

That so sums up much of my life. I'm a planner. I love to plan - the next hour, day, month, etc... I think all my life I've always looked to the future. Occasionally I've looked back and regretted the past, but mostly always looking to the future. Now, it's a good thing to plan. I'll always be a planner. But God has been showing me that too much thinking about the future doesn't leave me any time to enjoy the present. I want to enjoy the present, the kids who have to come out and talk to me "one more time" before going to bed. The crazy little songs, stories & knock knock jokes. The swim parties, great hugs & times spent snuggled together reading. AND I want to look at my little kiddlings (and my husband for that matter) and just be in AWE of how wonderfully and beautifully made they are instead of how they didn't pick up their toys AGAIN.

That is my prayer. May I live in the moment, sense God in the moment and enjoy my family in the moment.

I'll keep you updated on how I'm doing... :-)

Bitty Baby heaven

Alyssa got a bitty baby today. She has been saving since spring to buy an American Girl doll and decided to go with a bitty baby since it was cheaper & she decided she wanted another baby doll. I have a bit of a hard time with American Girl dolls because they are soooo expensive but I have to say, Alyssa bought this doll all by herself. She's been saving her allowance & she had 2 lemonade stands during garage sales this summer and earned over $30 - who'd a thunk? So, a bitty baby we have...

I will have to say that Alyssa & I have been reading through some of the American Girl doll book series (Kirstin, Josefina & Addy so far) and I really have enjoyed reading the books. They are historical stories about 9 year old girls set in different times & places in America. Alyssa doesn't get everything but she really enjoys having me read them and it's something the 2 of us do together.

I'm sure an American girl doll is in Alyssa's future plans - especially with the Mall of America opening a store there in November...

Summer Party Fun

Last year Alyssa decided she needed to have a summer swim party. Since we have no summer birthdays I decided to let her have one. Well, today was the 2nd annual summer party. Eight little ones 5 & under (including my kids) had a blast swimming, slip & sliding & playing with water balloons - and of course eating cool treats. Thanks goodness Gregg was there most of the time - he was daddy extraordinaire with the water balloons!

Another Trip

Yesterday we went to Brainerd to visit Gregg's family. His sister from Nebraska and her family were there. It was good to see everyone, Gregg got to play boche ball and I had several good conversations. Kinda hot but it's July, what do you expect? Alyssa & Matthew got to play with their cousins who used to live down the street from us (Sarah, Heather, Mary & Nathan) and they had such a good time with them! We didn't get home until 10pm and I think today is going to be a "recovery" day for all of us. In other words, naps for all - especially me! :-)

Movie Rip-off?

Today, Alyssa and I went on a date and saw the Kit Kittridge movie. Very cute - we had a good time. Of course we had to get popcorn and you can say I ate my share (20 minutes into the movie we had to get a refill! :-)

The one thing I didn't appreciate was spending $3.65 for a bottle of water. A bottle of water which at my house costs less than 50 cents and would be colder. Ugh! That was hard to do but what choice did we have?

I am a rule follower. If there's a rule, I feel it's my duty to follow it. Well, I have found a rule I will not follow in the future. Like I told my husband, if they only charged a little more than normal, like $2 I would probably still buy it but $3.65?? I will NOT buy that again! (of course, this is the first movie I've seen in well over 6 months so the movie theatres are probably not too scared of my proclamation).

My Grandpa's Funeral

We're back from Iowa and my grandpa's funeral. It was sad and wonderful all at the same time. I have 7 cousins and I can't tell you the last time (or really if ever) we have all been together but this week, everyone came for my grandpa's funeral. It was really nice. I'll try to post a picture later - my uncle took a lot of pics.

I was overwhelmed by all the food that was given to my grandma for all of us to eat. Definitely a small-town thing but also a great tribute to how much my grandparents helped others and how much they were loved.

My grandpa served in the navy from 1943-45, much of the time in Hawaii after Pearl Harbor so there was also a gun salute, my grandma was given his flag & they played taps. Honestly, that and watching my grandma say goodbye at the graveside service, were probably the hardest parts for me.

On a good note, all 5 of us slept in one room at a hotel (2 double beds & a pack 'n play) for 2 nights and we did it! Both Gregg & I found out what bedhogs our children are and of course, we were happy to be back in our home beds last night but I was truly amazed at how well everyone did...