If you finish your school work early...

We're all about rewards in our house. Cowboy usually is the creative one to think of them, but I'm happy to follow through if they make my life easier and more fun!

So...before Christmas break Cowboy dangled the carrot in front of Miss B and C-Man. They went for it!!!

I had their agendas filled out with everything that needed to be accomplished before we started our official Christmas Break. Cowboy told the kids if they finished by certain dates they would receive rewards. The sooner they finished, the bigger the reward. He did this to save my sanity and I thank him for that! (He's always looking out for my sanity).

Miss B stayed up until after midnight one night to finish her work so that she would have an extra week of Christmas Break.

She and I went to our city's downtown area to ice skate. We had so much fun and laughed SO hard at each other! I worked very hard to NOT FALL!!! She, of course, made fun of me for my caution. However, I tried to remind her my body was old and I could get seriously hurt if I fell.



After successfully ice skating without injury, we had dinner together. Don't panic about the amount of food she consumed. Right after this she swam for an hour and fifteen minutes. (Makes me tired to think about it).



This reward was TOTALLY worth it!!! Not only did I not have to harp on Miss B to finish up her school work on the days preceding Christmas, but I also got to spend time with my girl. PRICELESS!!!

Today I'm tired.

...tired of cleaning up vomit on floors
...tired of cleaning up vomit on children & their clothes
...tired of cleaning up vomit on bedding
...tired of sanitizing the high chair, sink, & bath tub
...tired of spraying disinfectant
...tired of not having Cowboy here to sleep next to
...tired of worrying about who's going to get sick next
...tired of telling kids to clean their rooms
...tired of working hard on Little Bit's hair only to have it look like she did it herself


So this morning I'm going to start my day with Coke and this bit of God's Word that I'm holding on tightly to today.

My people will live in peaceful dwelling places,
in secure homes,
in undisturbed places of rest.
Isaiah 32:18

His Hand

With plans for Cowboy & Miss B to be out of town for a few days, Saturday afternoon Cowboy and I decided we better get out and about with all the kids to stock up on groceries so that I wouldn't have to get out with 4 by myself to shop when you can't even push a shopping cart through the parking lots of the grocery stores because of the packed snow. While we were getting everyone ready to head out, my mom called and said if we'd pick up the things on her list, she and Dad would keep all the kids for Cowboy and I to run errands without the whole crew. HOW AMAZING!!!

Yesterday Cowboy and Miss B went with our church youth group to San Antonio for a fun trip. Last night NoBo started throwing up here at home, then Cowboy called me to tell me Miss B was doing the same thing at the church they were staying at in San Antonio. YUCK! I was SO thankful that Cowboy was on the trip with her and could take care of her.

Today 2 of my dear friends have taken my other 3 kids off my hands so I could sanitize my home and take care of NoBo. My sweet mother-in-law is bringing homemade chicken and noodles for dinner.

I just got off the phone with Cowboy and Miss B is feeling much better. They were walking through the parking lot at Sea World ready to see Shamu!

How amazing when I choose to see God's hand at work in our lives each and every day!!!

Providence

Yesterday started out as one of those days. I entered the little boys' bedroom to the discover the stinch of puke on NoBo. I didn't see any evidence, but I knew it was there. I immediately went into panic. This is the teeny tiny 2-year old who doesn't even weigh 19 pounds. His body can't afford to get any smaller and I can't afford to lose time with my family by being in the hospital with him, if dehydration happened. After a clean-up, he acted as if he was starving. I tried his cup, which he quickly ejected from his body. I cleaned everything up, sent out a text to family, friends, and his case worker asking for prayer.

With all of this taking place, I decided to change my plans for the day. I'd stay in all day with kiddos, instead of running a few errands I had planned on.

Little Bit's mom called at about this time and I explained to her we SO wanted to have Little Bit over to spend the night, but was now worried about giving her NoBo's stomach crud. I told her Cowboy would pick up Little Bit after he got off work unless she heard back from me that NoBo had gotten sick again.

Well...NoBo did NOT get sick again, but I did get many Christmas gifts wrapped during afternoon nap time, some dishes done, and laundry mostly caught up.

Cowboy called after picking up Little Bit and told me her mom, her siblings, and her don't currently have a home. They've been driving around in their van for the past day, but the van was now about out of gas and they were out of money. They'd been living with a boyfriend of mom's, who was getting ready to get violent. Mom felt it was necessary for everybody's safety to leave everything behind and get out of there. Cowboy told me to plan to have Little Bit through Christmas and possibly longer. The big kids and I kicked it into high gear getting the dining room table cleared (our kitchen table, which seats 6, is clearly NOT big enough for a family of 7), cleaning bathrooms, rounding up clothes for her, etc.

This morning, after having Little Bit safely nestled between me and Cowboy during the night, I am SO grateful for God's providence. He made a way yesterday for me to get more done at home than I'd planned, because of NoBo's yucky tummy.

I would've never dreamed we would be able to have ALL our children home for Christmas together. Thank you, God, for your divine providence!

Our Favorite Christmas Tradition 2009

We (somewhat) pulled it off again!

Our kids had a very sneaky suspicion about what was coming. They've been driving us crazy for the last few days wondering when we were going to look at lights. They're also getting older and resisting bedtimes more, so it's difficult to put them all to bed and get them up out of bed to surprise them with our annual Christmas Light-seeing. We typically wait until they've been in bed for about 30 minutes. This year we were struggling to get them out of their showers in time to catch the lights before they shut them down at 11. After the 2 big kids were cleaned & dresseed, we told them to hustle to the car. Cowboy's mom came in to sit with NoBo, while he slept.

We loaded everyone up with their blankets. We had no time for our normal 7-11 run, but the kids didn't mind.

This was Little I's second time to go with us on our late-night adventure. When we told him we were going to look at the Christmas lights, he asked, "What are they going to do for us?" I love this age! Apparently he'd forgotten all about looking at lights last year.

Once we were at the light display, we let the kids unbuckle. Little I was hysterical! He was WOUND UP!!! I think we had just as much fun giggling at his silliness as we did oohing and aahing over the lights. I love having the age range we have with our kids. The joy that Miss B & C-Man get from their younger brothers makes my heart smile.

I'm thinking next year we'll need to do this on a schoolnight a couple weeks before Christmas so they won't suspect a thing. Whether they were surprised or not, we're still making memories!

Two of a Kind

When Cowboy & I were engaged there was a Garth Brooks song that we loved, Two of a Kind Working on a Full House. Cowboy kept teasing me that it would be sung at our wedding. I put my foot down there--how hick are we, really? I said the ONLY way that would be sung at our wedding was by Garth himself. He assured me he could make that happen, since we both went to the same high school and college as Garth (only 10 years later).

Well...the song was thankfully not sung at our wedding. I just happened to think of that song today and thought that there are many times I feel like our house couldn't get any more full. (Yes, my friends with BIG families, I know it could). My family today is not at all what I thought my family would look like, but I wouldn't change it for ANYTHING! God has worked in our lives in ways, that 17 years ago when we were a few weeks shy of being married, would've been unimaginable to us.

So...is your house full? Do you have a real faith in Christ? Are you living it? Can you welcome into your home a child who is currently without parents? I'm challenging you now to pray about how your family can help foster children in your area during 2010. Perhaps you can become a foster family or an adoptive family or a respite family or volunteer at your county's shelter, where the kids live while they wait for a foster home.

Real religion, the kind that passes muster before God the Father, is this: Reach out to the homeless and loveless in their plight, and guard against corruption from the godless world. James 1:27 (The Message)

Poopsicles

So Little I asked me tonight if I'd ever had "one of those poopsicles". He said, "the ones that we had at that hotel that had writing on them and Deanna Jones (Indiana Jones). C-Man said, "He's talking about a pop-tart."

Little I said, "Yeah, a fart tart." Then he asked me if I'd ever had a fart-tart.

I'm grateful tonight that I've never had a poopsicle or a fart-tart!!!

Drawing Names for Christmas?

As you can surely tell by my lack of posts lately, and my inability to finish my Disney World posts, life has been insane lately! My laptop died after only being with me 15 months. BOO HOO!!!

So...I'm trying to catch up on life and get ready for the holidays. What? The holidays? Is this some sort of cruel joke? No! The holidays are really just around the corner. I heard my first Christmas song on the radio last week on my way home from Bible Study.

The first thing my sisters and I do to get ready is to draw names for all our kids. I found an awesome site this year that does all the work for you! Your kids can enter their wish lists and draw names online!!!

It's brilliant and I wish I'd have thought of it!!!

To check out the site, click on the title of this post and you'll go directly to the draw names site.

Happy drawing!

There's No Denying I'm Blessed

Disney World Vacation Recap--Day 2

First of all, please forgive me for not sticking to my plan of blogging about each day of our vacation on consecutive days. What was I thinking? I'm back in the REAL world, not Disney World.

Day Two
Cowboy and I woke up at 3:45 AM so that we could get to the airport on time.
Here are the kids, in the dark, walking on the tarmac to get to the plane.

We were so nervous about how Little I would do on a plane. He did GREAT!

Disney Travel Tip
When you stay at a Disney Resort, Disney sends you luggage tags so that you don't have to claim your luggage when you arrive in Orlando. They also provide ground transportation to and from the airport. If you pre-register within 10 days of your arrival, the check-in time at the resort is SHORT!

Here's what we saw when we got to our room.
Let the magic begin!

We quickly sat down our bags, took a fast bathroom break, and headed out the door for some fun!

We caught the bus to Epcot (my favorite park). We went straight to "Land" to ride Soarin'. Then went over "Sea" to see Turtle Talk with Crush. FINALLY we got to go back to Land and eat at The Garden Grill. It was AMAZING!!! Our stomachs may have been partly influenced by the fact we hadn't had a real meal all day. Here we are with all the characters at The Garden Grill.

Highlight
The best part about Day 2 was definitely the food at The Garden Grill.

Lowlight
In the midst of a crazy day of traveling, Little I managed to have 2 accidents. One happened on the plane. (I wiped his seat clean as we left the plane). The other happened in our brand new stroller. For the rest of the day all I could smell was urine! I know it was all in my head, but I couldn't get that smell out of my nostrils!!!

Disney Travel Tip
We all decided after this first day at parks that we should have done Magic Kingdom for our first day. It just feels more "magical". Fortunately, four of the five of us have experienced the magic of Disney World and Little I didn't know the difference.

Disney World Vacation Recap--Day 1

I recently went to Disney World with Cowboy and our 3 biggest kids. We were away from home for 10 nights! It was amazing!!! Since I've not blogged in awhile, I thought I might just blog each day for the next several days and tell anyone who cares our Disney travel tips, highlights, lowlights, or memorable events of our trip.

So...
without further ado here's the 1st day:

Day One
The munchkins took the day off from schoolwork, laid around, and watched old Disney movies as we continued to acquaint Little I with all things Disney. I packed like a crazed person. Cowboy came home early from work. We did a triple-check of everyone's packing lists and loaded up. We dropped NoBo off with our good friend who kept him the entire time we were gone and headed for Wichita, KS.

Disney Travel Tip
Why Wichita? Cowboy is a bargain-hunting cheapskate and flying out of Wichita, instead of Oklahoma City, saved us $850!!! The drive only takes about 2 1/2 hours and Wichita has QT's and Spangles! We discovered that most hotels near airports now offer "Park, Stay & Fly". You stay one night with them, leave your vehicle with them, and they'll shuttle you to and from the airport. This was cheaper for our family than leaving our van at the airport the whole time.

Highlight
The hotel we stayed at clearly used to be a Holidome. Does anyone have fond memories of those growing up like I do? Anyway, now there's shuffleboard, miniature golf, ping pong, and arcade games instead of the large indoor pool that Holidomes were centered around. We had a blast playing with the kids!






Lowlight
Little I cried for about an hour and a half while we were trying to get everyone to bed at a decent hour so that we could wake up WAY before the crack of dawn to catch our flight. He said things like, "I want my own bed. I want to go home." We we prayed like crazy that the next 9 nights would be a nightmare for us!

Why are we paying for what we can get for free?

Some months back Cowboy and I decided to join the gym where Miss B swims 5 nights a week. We decided this was a great way to spend our time while she was there. The boys would all go to the childcare room and we'd get in some much-needed workout time. The plan seemed to go along rather nicely until..

VBS, back-to-school activities and planning, numerous trips to the chiropractor, sick kids, and life in general!

So I was looking back at some pictures from a couple months ago when Little Bit came to spend the night with us and realized WE DON'T NEED TO PAY TO GO TO A GYM! Here's why...



Cowboy can get a great workout by doing push ups with little ones all over him or just by crawling around on the floor while carrying Little Bit. (She weighs a TON).



I have my own live-in trainers who LOVE to push me WAY PAST MY LIMITS!!! (Can you see the look of pain on my face? My trainer loves to get me to make this face.)



Bench pressing little ones can give a great upper body workout.



Parenting NoBo requires me to act as his physical therapist (and speech therapist, and child development specialist,etc.)



Did I mention we already have our very own highly trained child care provider on site?

These Sweet Blessings

Today Miss B reminded me yet again that she's growing up. It can't be stopped, I know, but I wish it would just slow down sometimes.

She fixed lunch for us. She worked hard to cook and prepare everything for her brothers and me. She added a bit of flair with her presentation that is SO not me (or maybe it was, because it was all symmetrical). Anyway, she had a lovely plate of fruits and veggies that was laid out so beautifully in the middle of the table for us.

I decided she could just be in charge of lunches around here. Shoot, I have enough things to be in charge of. So...I'm turning over the reins to my very capable girl. She's going to capably care for a family of her own someday, I'm quite certain. I hope she has a whole mess of kids!!! Of course, she'll adopt them all because she can't bear the thought of actually birthing a child. I think that's just fine, too. The love is the same no matter how they come to you.

Tonight as C-Man was lying down to go to sleep he looked up and said, "Thanks, Mom." I questioned what he was grateful for and he just said, "Thanks for everything." I tried to keep him from seeing me hold back the tears. How tender that boy is! He is going to be a fine husband someday...just like his Daddy.

OK, I'm too sentimental tonight. I'm crying just writing this.

I'm just blessed to be Mom to as many Sweet Blessings as God wants me to be--hopefully only 4, though. OK, God? Did you hear me? I'm totally good with 4.

Family Tradition

Cowboy started something years ago that the kids LOVE!!! What's not to love when you're given the freedom to use your dad's back as a canvas?

Anyway, the tradition has morphed and changed. It is no longer just about coloring on dad's back. ANYONE is fair game in this house!

Brown-Handed

So this morning C-Man says to NoBo, "I've caught you brown-handed".

He said, "I would have said 'red-handed' if he was an Indian."

C-Man makes me laugh! He knows he's funny, too, which can be problematic at times.

Mental Defect

I have a sickness, a mental defect, if you will.

I LOVE school supplies--fresh, new, unsharpened pencils, crayons with perfect tips, new pencil pouches, neatly arranged colored pencils, binders screaming for fun scrapbook paper to be placed in their front covers to make them look all cutesy, RSVP pens in all colors,...




Maybe my mental defect stems from my elementary years. Our family would go to Ratcliffe's Books to purchase our workbooks that our school required for the year. Because it was a college bookstore, my eyes would wander to the other items the bookstore sold. Such excitement--everything was colorful and new!!!

Or maybe my mental defect stems from my need to have order. Unmarked workbooks, pages without eraser marks. No mistakes have been made in any books! How peaceful...




Or perhaps my mental defect stems from my public school teaching days. That first day of school with all those fresh school supplies was the last day of complete cleanliness and order for the entire school year.

Wherever it came from, my sickness is here in FULL force. I love the beginning of something new...something pure...something clean!!!

Wait a minute, those things I LOVE about new school supplies are just the things God does in our lives. His sweet mercy and grace takes us from the marred mess we are and makes us new, pure, and clean! What a beautiful gift!!!

Marriage Workout

Is your marriage out-of-shape? Once a marriage has gotten to the point of sarcastic comments, empty threats, non-communication, it's hard to know what to do to get it back to the way it once was. It's not like you can hire a marriage trainer who can come into your home and correct your bad habits and strengthen your marriage by creating good habits. Yes, you can see a counselor, but the work is on you. Maybe your marriage is not in that bad of shape, but you know it needs a little more work than you've been putting into it.

I recently had a friend who was struggling in her marriage. Here's some advice I gave her (plus a little more):

If your husband enjoys a neat and tidy home (and you're not typically inclined to have it that way), 30 minutes before he arrives home assign each family member a “zone” of the house to work quickly on! Not deep-cleaning, here, just sprucing up the place to let him feel good about coming home—dirty clothes, toys, dishes, & shoes put away, etc. If you do this correctly, by letting him know you’re all trying to make his workload lighter at home and that you appreciate how hard he works for your family (even if the work is self-imposed and you don’t necessarily think it needs to be done), he will feel more appreciated and less tired from doing all this himself.

Learn your husband's love language (get the book by Gary Chapman). Chances are he gives and receives love differently than you. For instance, my primary love language is acts of service. When Cowboy does the dishes, sweeps the floor, cleans the van, or makes the bed I feel SO loved by him. I know he does things like that to lighten my burden. His love languages are physical touch and quality time. When I sit with him on the couch and hold hands while watching a TV show or watching something on the laptop, it speaks volumes to him.

Men love to be praised and encouraged. Thank him for everything he does. Text him sweet nothings. Tell him he does a great job. Even if you don’t feel like he gives you words of encouragement, be the bigger person and use loving words to and about him.

If you're wanting to change your husband, beware! It seems like most of the work of “changing” your husband actually comes from changing your own attitude about and towards your husband. I know that sounds awful, but I’ve noticed it to be true in our marriage.

Go on a date! Find a babysitter or a family member to watch the kids and go out with your hubby!!! Let him know it’s important to you that you 2 continue to work on your own relationship. If you only have money for a sitter and not a date, get creative! You can go to a bookstore and enjoy some time together while looking at magazines and books. Looking at a Southern Living magazine while your hubby looks at Sports Illustrated probably wouldn't be your best choice, but you people are smart enough to make good date night reading selections.

Finally, the one that you might not want to hear: HAVE SEX! I’ve discovered that no matter how TIRED I am, sex is a very good thing for marriage. Extra grace seems to be extended after sex!

Enjoy getting back into shape!!!

SO Amazing

Today I'm just reflecting today on how good my husband is! Truly amazing!!!

We won a night's stay at a bed and breakfast about 6 months ago and we haven't gone yet. BUMMER, I know. Cowboy told me a couple days ago that he called, made the reservation, and was working on a babysitter! How fabulous is that? Get this-there was a cancellation for the honeymoon cottage for the night we booked, so since the lady felt sorry for us since we have 4 kids, she is letting us have it!!! I love that most of the US has less than 3 kids--it makes them take pity on the rest of us crazies! I don't need pity, but I'll take it in this case.

While we're on the husband topic, let me just say that I really try to be submissive to my husband's authority. However, I made a statement a few weeks ago in front of my parents that might have just shocked my Dad (or maybe not, because I am his daughter--outspoken nature and all).

We were talking about my short hair and how freeing it is. I said I realize it's not a glamorous, sexy thing, but it's SO do-able for me. Someone made the comment that men would never choose for us womenfolk to have short hair. I said I didn't really care what Cowboy thought of it, it was on MY body and I'm the one who has to deal with it.

By the way, Cowboy has never told me he likes/dislikes my hair a certain way and has also never asked me to do/not do anything in particular with it. I'm SO blessed!

He's also an amazing Daddy! I do not deserve this man, but am so glad God chose me for him anyway. OK, I'm finished bragging now.

It's Your Thing

Miss B and I were talking the other day about some odd quirks she has: bumping into things with one side of her body, then she has to with the other; tapping things an even number of times; etc. She asked me why she did that. I had no great answer and told her those were just a few quirky little OCD-ish behaviors.

Then we starting talking about how everyone probably has some sort of quirky behaviors. I have too many to mention right now. But here are a few examples: our comforter must have the flowers facing a certain direction; pillow cases must face a certain way; I could spend a solid hour cleaning the stove and completely ignore HUGE piles of clutter in the kitchen; I LOVE symmetry.

So, what's your thing? It would make me feel so much more normal to know others have weird things, too!

Boycott

OK, when a restaurant gets your order wrong they should not only fix it, but they should APOLOGIZE! Is it really too much to ask?

C-Man decided after my second trip into the restaurant (after driving through to avoid actually going in) we should boycott the place. So...I'm going to do my best to stick with his wishes. We will now be boycotting that particular establishment. (But most definitely not the whole chain!)

Simple as Legos

Well, we've now spent 6 nights at my parents house. The a/c is STILL not fixed. The part should hopefully be in tomorrow.

Trying to explain to Little I why we can't go home has been confusing. He can see our house across the street and it looks fine.

He told me a couple days ago, "Our house is broke. We'll have to break it down and build it again."

Oh, if everything were as simple as Legos!!!

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

Just so you know, I AM COMPETITIVE. There, I said it, hopefully you'll better understand the following story now that you know that.

Last night we were hanging at my parents house (for the 4th night because our a/c still isn't fixed) with Baby Sis, her hubby, my parents, and all of our kids. Baby Sis's 3-year old boy had soaked through his Pull-Up and she was changing him. She held it up and said how heavy it was. (And it WAS quite visibly full of urine).

So...being the competitive older sister that I am, I decided to check Little I's Pull-Up. Yes, I know he's 4. He's pretty much potty trained, but he'd been at Papa & Nana's all evening with no parent to make him stop playing and remind him to use the potty chair.

Anyway, Little I's Pull-Up was bulging, so I whipped it off of him and waved it around to prove that his was bigger, more full of urine, and to my surprise out dropped a poop nugget on my parents' coffee table.

Winner! Winner! Chicken Dinner!

I SOOOOOO won!!!

NoBo's progress

A few weeks ago I expressed some frustration to Cowboy that NoBo was just not progressing like I hoped he would when he first came to our home. Cowboy pointed out many ways that NoBo had made progress since coming to live with our family in January. Recently I've noticed even more progress, which is very hopeful.

As many of you know, we really struggle with NoBo's eating. Recently we've gone to a psychologist's office for some help with his food aversions. Things seem to be looking up. A few days ago he weighed in at a whopping 18.7 pounds. The 18-pound mark has seemed like an unattainable goal since we've had NoBo. Everytime he'd approach 18 pounds he'd get sick and lose back down. Needless to say, we've been rejoicing with his weight gain!!!

He's vocalizing often and the sounds he makes are no longer just vowel sounds. Yay for consonants!

A few minutes ago he took his first step!!!

Currently he's throwing a fit because I won't let him touch the keyboard. Things like this are a huge praise. I know that sounds funny, but I get excited when he exhibits "normal" behaviors. He's throwing a fit right now as I type that is very typical of a 1 1/2 year old. YAY!!!

Thanks for letting me share my excitement in the baby steps. I'm believing God will continue to restore losses that NoBo has had.

Where has chivalry gone?

OK, I realize that in most areas I am very old-fashioned and this one is NO exception.

Last night Cowboy and I were doing weights together at the gym and these two guys next to us were using some foul language in just their everyday talk. After the first one used his filthy mouth I said nothing, then the next one chimed in. Seriously, they were only 3 feet away. I felt they should have noticed a lady was present, but they didn't.

So, I did the thing I've done numerous times. (Which, by the way, does embarrass Miss B to no end). I asked the men to please watch their language. The one who I specifically asked said, "Oh, sorry." Whether he meant it or not, I don't care. He didn't have to apologize or watch his mouth, but he did and I'm grateful. I heard no more ash tray talk from him or his bad-mouthed pal.

My point is, how far have we come with our whole "women's lib"? Apparently now we're so equal that men don't even recognize when ladies are in their presence. You can ask Cowboy, it's QUITE apparent from my body that I'm a lady. Even though my hair is short, my chest is not anywhere near flat! :)

I do have to point out at this time that these men were in their 40's and not wearing wedding bands. Just an observation. Take what you want from it.

So I guess all I want is for men to be men. I want men to be protectors and defenders of ladies. I hope I'm raising my boys to be just that.

A Little Peek Into Our Future

Friday night Cowboy and I ran some errands and went to dinner with the 2 little guys. C-Man was away with my parents for the weekend and Miss B was fulfilling the commitments on her social calendar.

As we're sitting at dinner, we realized how funny it felt for just the cute brown boys and us to be together. Then it hit me! This is just a peek into the next few years of our lives. The older our 2 big kids get, the more this will happen. WOW! You don't realize when they're so little how soon it will all pass. Their time with you will be less and less, which is normal, I know. But WEIRD nonetheless.

The other things running through my mind as people are commenting on our cute boys...Do people think to themselves, "Oh, that poor couple wasn't able to have kids" or "How sweet that they adopted internationally" or "They are definitely older parents!" Who knows? But, here's my responses... "No, not poor us, blessed us. Not international adoption! They're from right here in our community. And, finally, YES, we are older parents!!! But, we didn't start this way 12 years ago when we had our first!"

Praise God!

The rain is here. I had just finished publishing my last post when C-Man looked outside and said, "Why is everything all wet? Oh! It's raining."

Isn't God good?

Bring the Rain

OK, let me just whine for a minute. May is usually an AWFUL month for me when it comes to how I feel. My allergies get so bad that I usually spend at least one full day in bed from pure exhaustion. The sneezing and itchy eyes do me in!

This May was actually quite pleasant for me because of the cooler weather which forged its way through most of the spring.

I suppose because the weather stayed cool for so long things are blooming later. Therefore, June so far has KILLED me!

I spent about 10 minutes outside Saturday and was yuck all day Sunday.

Yesterday morning I spent about an hour outside with the kids and I was sick all day. I had to miss a meeting last night and C-Man's baseball game. BOO HOO!!!

Today I'm declaring myself a prisoner in my own house. I'm trying not to step outside for ANYTHING!

I've loosened the reins on the 2 big kids and allowed them to spray paint outside without my supervision. I've sent Cowboy to Wal-Mart to buy a few supplies for Little I's birthday party tomorrow. I've had my children monitor Little I while he went outside to "water" the grass. (I'm not sure why he refuses to use the toilet, but I'll glady let him use the outdoor facilities if it means less urine in the Pull-Up).

Tomorrow I will have to get out and about, so I'm praying that today some rain comes to settle down all those allergens that have been flying around!

Please Come Home

Baby Sister's hubby has been on tour with George Thoroughgood for a few weeks in Europe. She's driving with her in-laws and boys right now to Phoenix to meet him when he comes back to the states. Here are some pics of her oldest boy's visitors last week.



What a lucky 3-year old boy! He had the firetruck make a personal visit to him!



Oh, yeah, did I mention that the reason for their visit was to rescue him from Baby Sister's vehicle? He managed to lock himself in (with her keys) while she was unloading at Dad & Mom's house to get ready for family vacation.



All was well, he was barely sweating when they got him out!

Notice Little I watching all the fun from our curb! (The pink balloon is awesome, right?)

Tender-Hearted Boy

This evening Cowboy and I took C-Man to church to meet with our pastor about C-Man's baptism this Sunday. Our pastor wanted to make sure C-Man understood the significance of his baptism and needed to make sure there were no unanswered questions before the big event.

After all the details and discussions of baptism were over, our pastor asked C-Man if he had any other questions. C-Man asked him what happened to young children who hadn't asked Jesus into their hearts and died. Our pastor gave him the answer that I've given him before. Our understanding of God and His love leads us to believe that those children will be in heaven. I don't think our pastor knew exactly what was on C-Man's mind, but I had a hunch.

I asked, "Are you concerned about Little I?"

Yes, he was. How precious is that?

SO BLESSED!

It's such a blessing to have good friends live just around the corner. You know the kind...their teenage son feels comfortable enough to drop by anytime and do his best Urkel...you can call them as you are literally driving out of the neighborhood for a long holiday weekend to ask if they'll take care of your dog/mail/newspaper (& they say yes)...you go on a ski trip with them and everyone has a great time without fussing. I'm so BLESSED!

Homecoming Dance

I got to go to a homecoming dance this weekend! Here's the kicker--my date was C-Man. Here we are together...



Cowboy was my twin brother, who was dating Miss before I broke them up, with the help of my niece, Niecy Dork. Sounds a bit Soap Opera-ish, doesn't it?

Did I mention that we were on family vacation this weekend with my parents and my sisters and their families? My parents take us every year on Memorial Day weekend for a little getaway. It gets better and better the older the kids get!!!

Niecy Dork and Miss B fighting over Cowboy...



Mack and S-Man were dating...



Here are Niecy Dork, Mom, C-Man, and Cowboy enjoying the grub Miss Musicality served. YUMMY!!!



Here's Dad, the high school football coach...



The sad part is that I didn't get Miss Musicality (and she's the onle who planned this whole murder mystery evening), Baby Sis (she was chasing her 2 little guys most of the evening by herself because her hubby is in Europe for a few weeks) or Miss Musicality's husband (he's a professional photographer now & his camera rarely leaves his hand) in a single picture. By the way, you can check out his work by clicking on the title of this post.

We had a fabulous time and can't wait to have another murder mystery at next year's family vacation.

Outdoor Living Space

I've always secretly desired to have an outdoor living space. You know the kind? You've seen them before at Sam's. Your kids want to adjust the lovely red canvas umbrella that coordinates so beautifully with the dark brown wicker furniture with deep red cushions for the love seat, ottoman, and sofa.

You can picture yourself drinking your refreshing Coke Zero that your husband just retrieved for you from your outdoor bar area. You recline with him while watching your four peaceful children play quietly in the yard together.

Well, yesterday morning as I'm in the van leaving for church (Cowboy was already there warming up with the band--not sure how you warm up a bass guitar), the 3 boys donning their matching shorts and shirts, Miss B wearing an adorable summer dress, and me looking mom-ish, going over my mental pre-church checklist something catches my eye.

Could it be someone knows my secret thoughts of a lovely outdoor living space? I was absolutely stunned to see that someone had done this for us:





You'd have been stunned, too!!! Not only did we get a sofa, lamp, TV, table, and flower vase filled with silk flowers, but we also got a trash can (a partially-filled trash can, I might add).

Slippery Stuff

For those of you who are not blessed to have someone with beautiful brown skin in your family, here's a news flash:

Quality Oils & Lotions Are Needed To Keep Skin Healthy





Apparently Little I was born with that knowledge. At only 3 years 11 months 1 week and 3 days he knows that to keep his skin healthy-looking and feeling, he needs oil. Look at how well he took care of himself yesterday.

We're pretty sure he's ready for body-building competitions!

Miss Mack

When I was 21, married for only a year, and doing my student teaching, I became an aunt. I was heartbroken that I did not get to meet Miss Mack when she was in the hospital, but when you're student teaching you don't really get to take personal days. So, when she was a week old or so Cowboy and I made the road trip from Stillwater (God's Country) to Dallas. I fell instantly in love!!!

I spoiled her to the best of my ability, even though she lived in Texas, then Iowa. I took her to Discovery Zone (just the 2 of us) when she was only 1. I climbed through every slide and tube with her. She stayed the night with us when she was 2. She locked herself into a bedroom and I went into complete panic! I couldn't, for the life of me, remember how to pick a bedroom door lock, and Cowboy was unavailable at work. (Apparently it had been too long since her mom and I were living at home together under our parents' roof, driving each other crazy). I actually had to call the local fire department and have some help. (Embarrassing, I know, but I just kept thinking of what she could be getting into by herself in that room and how her mother would just KILL me if I let anything happen to her baby girl).

Then, when Miss Mack was 3, I had Miss B. Well...things changed a little with our relationship. I still adored her, but was rather occupied with my own precocious little girl. Then she had a baby brother, then I had C-Man, then blah, blah, blah. You get the picture. Life happens. When her family lived in Iowa I was fortunate enough to get to have Miss Mack and her brother come stay with us sometimes while their parents were busy working church camps, etc. Then, when Miss Mack was in 4th grade, they moved back to Oklahoma. Fewer overnight trips to Aunt Jenn's house. Then she became a sister to a sister. Then we got Little I. Then her mom had her surprise baby. You get the picture again. When Mack was in middle school I was able to teach her a subject a year for a few years. Then she went to public school for high school. SIGH...

So...last night I was left at home with just the 2 little ones. I invited Miss Mack over for dinner and a movie. We had a great time. She is 15 and is an amazing girl! She is a Christ-follower, a world-changer, a wonderful photographer, student, friend, sister, cousing, daughter, niece, babysitter, etc. I was so happy to get to hang with her. It's fun in a happy-sad sort of way to see her getting so old and mature.

Catching My Breath

Sometimes the change in our kids happens so gradually that, unless you go away for a few days, you don't seem to notice it.

At other times, though, the change happens so fast that it takes your breath away! That's the kind of change C-Man's had lately.

A couple days ago from the back seat of the van I hear, "Mom, my pits stink."

Being the great mom that I am, I holler back, "We've gone through this before, C-Man. You don't need deodorant yet."

When we arrived home he insisted that I smell of his pits. I did so expecting not to smell anything except that wet puppy dog smell that little boys have after playing outside. WHOA! Was I ever wrong! He had REAL STINK--manly stink! He proudly washed his pits and applied his daddy's deodorant to his pits.

Then, Last night Cowboy calls me to say he and C-Man have left baseball practice and are heading to Wal-Mart. I can't imagine why they would need to go to Wal-Mart so late at night. (I'd already been twice this week--what else could we possibly need?) Cowboy then informs me that C-Man was playing catcher during practice, stood up (without knowing any better) and took a ball to his almost-personal region. Realizing he didn't want C-Man to have a closer call than this, Cowboy decided to take C-Man to buy his first......I can't even write it! He's such a grown boy!!!

SIGH...what's a mom to do when her first boy is wearing deodorant and other items? Thank goodness he still kisses and hugs me!

It's Official

Click on the title of today's post for an amazing video. It will bring you to tears, I'm sure.

Apparently after a total of almost 26 years of parenting (each kids' ages added together), I'm finally being recognized for the bang-up job I'm doing.

Yes, I was in shock to win this, especially since Cowboy says things like, "Spanking is the international sign of love."

Apparently those who voted on me realized that the recipient this year needed to be a completely selfless mom. You know the kind, right? A mom who keeps a stash of Coke Zero at home and won't buy pop for her children, a mom who takes her children's good Christmas and Easter candy to enjoy herself, a mom who can't wait for 9 pm each night when she gets to sit with her man and relax with a cup of hot cocoa with whipped cream, a mom who loves the time she gets at the gym by herself, a mom who does not like to take her children to Wal-Mart,...

I'm so proud to say I AM THAT SELFLESS MOM and apparently from the award I received, it has paid off!!!

Happy Mother's Day to all of the truly selfless moms out there!

This is Why I Taught Him to Read

The whole family was running errands together today. I hear laughter from the back seat. Then C-Man speaks up, "natural gas pipeline. It's a fart pipeline!"

When I taught this kid to read when he was 4, I had no idea he'd use his gift to keep our whole family in stitches! I love his sense of humor and fresh outlook on life.

Seeing Double

Are you seeing double?

Let me just say...as long as C-Man wants to dress like Little I, I will purchase as many matching outfits as possible. Because they look nothing like brothers it is oh so precious when they dress alike. So I was completely thrilled last week when my purchases arrived at my front door!!!

And the clothes in this pic were a steal! I also got a few matching things for NoBo.

I'm also thinking ahead to Disney World. I LOVE for our family to dress alike at Disney World. It's more difficult to lose our kids and we're maybe possibly more likely to get noticed from their Prize Patrol (I know...I'm crazy!).

Control Freak

OK, you must know that my need to control is deeply rooted! I'm not sure how or when those seeds originally took root, but they are firmly planted in me.

So...


Two days ago Cowboy refilled the toilet paper in our bathroom and it's the "wrong" way. I told myself that it was no big deal. I was going to force myself to live with it this way until the roll was empty. I even contemplated pulling every last square off the roll and throwing them in the trash just so I could put a new roll on the "right" way, without actually changing the roll that was there. But, I prevailed!!! I was not going to give in to that desire to control.

Until today. I couldn't take it any longer!!! What's wrong with me??? I changed the roll so that it was facing the "right" way and I felt such a peace throughout my being. Sad, huh?

My Sunshine

OK, so yesterday after my frustrations I blogged about, I took this sweet video of Little I. This will put a smile on your face--GUARANTEED!

For the Love of Pete--Are you Kidding Me???

OK, do you remember the unfortunate fate of one of Cowboy's grill tools a few weeks ago? The event happened again just a few minutes ago! Same child, same incident with the toilet paper holder, but I wasn't going to surrender another grill tool of Cowboy's. So...I spent five minutes wandering aimlessly through the house for the perfect retriever. Well, it wasn't perfect, but I wound up using this Tupperware egg-dyeing spoon thingy.

When I say it wasn't perfect, you get it, right? I had a thorough hand-washing immediately following the event before I sat down to the laptop to vent!!!

On another note...
Do you know how frustrating it is as a foster parent to be told that your foster child's case in court will be heard at 10 and when you and your husband arrive PLENTY early you've missed the whole event? Then you find out that the foster child's mother's attorney dared to call you and your husband neglectful, suggesting you're the reason the said child is not gaining weight!!! Part of me wants to completely throw in the towel and go straight adoption to have another permanent member of our family!!! Seriously--it's not worth it! We weren't even able to be in the courtroom to defend ourselves. I love it when the biological families act like we're the enemy! Wake up, people, your own actions (or lack of actions) caused DHS to remove your children from your home! My job is to simply care for the child while he is in DHS custody.

URGH! Obviously I need to vent--sorry to anyone who expected something light-hearted or sweet! It's just not happening today, or at least right now.

Birthday Season is Quickly Approaching

OK, as you can tell by my Lilypie tickers, birthday season is around the corner for my family. So in the midst of trying to successfully wrap up this school year, plan our next school year, and search for great deals on curricula, I'm thinking of those party plans.

This year Miss B is requesting a mud party. SERIOUSLY? Where am I going to have a mud party? I'm sure my dad would let us come to the farm and dig a pit to fill with water to make our mud. But, then we'd have the issue of restrooms. Would a bunch of middle school girls really be OK with going outside? I doubt it! So, I've got myself a quandry. Her mind is made up and I doubt she'll change it. She is her mother's daughter.

C-Man wants a million different things for his party. He has a tough time making decisions (we have to time him on the toy aisle at Target) and this is no different. So far he's mentioned an architect party, Star Wars party, a mud party (he was accused of cheating), laser tag, ....

Little I doesn't care!!! How refreshing is that? He'll just be happy to have his 4 cousins over who are close in age and eat sweets with them.

I've got to get on the ball or I'll never be ready for the madness that is our late-May to mid-June birthday bonanza!

The Price I Pay for a Good Haircut

Being the good mama that I am, I had hair appointments for C-Man and Little I at the end of this week so that they will look handsome for Easter.

C-Man's haircut was a no-brainer. He needed a trim so that he can continue to grow it out again. He misses his longer hair (and I do too). Because my sister is our stylist he was able to walk across the street to her house and get a nice trim.
Little I, however, is a different story. We went back to see Tony yesterday. He's the barber who gave Little I his great triangles several weeks back. Anyway, here's how it went...

I left our house with all 3 boys at 4:05 in order to (hopefully) get to the shop on time. We pulled in the parking lot at 4:32 for a 4:30 appointment. We all unloaded, no doubt being watched on the TV inside the shop. (Yes, there are security cameras in the parking lot). The building has bars on the front door and the windows are all covered. We made it in and I noticed the sign propped up on the floor by the front desk area. "No children allowed unless they are receiving services." OOPS--I broke that rule.

We made our way over to the chairs where we would patiently wait our turn. I politely told Tony Little I had arrived for his 4:30 appointment and we began our wait. Things to do while we waited:
Watch BET (all kid-friendly shows--HA!)
Talk to each other
Notice that Tony is finished with the guy in the chair---YAY!!!
OOPS--too late--a teenage boy and his younger brother snuck in before us saying that they had called for a 4:30 appointment. Tony said, "No. I have Little I down for an appointment, but I'll go ahead and take care of you guys now." ARE YOU KIDDING ME?
Wait some more

2 police officers enter the shop (where there are 27-30 people) and ask if there was anyone named Kevin, Cam, or Cameron there. Everyone got quiet when they walked in. Did I mention that up until this point C-Man and I were the only 2 white people? Now there were 4 of us, but I would've preferred to have NOT been associated to these 2 jerks! The officers stood there at the front of the shop looking at all the people. After about 4-5 minutes one officer walked over to a gentleman sitting near us and said, "What's your name?" The gentleman told him his name was Ollie. He asked Ollie if he had any ID on him. Ollie didn't. Then the officer asked if he ever went by Kevin or Cam or Cameron. Ollie didn't. He asked how to spell his name. The gentleman spelled his name just as clearly as anyone else who'd had their name for 45 or more years. The officer at this point walked back by his partner. After a couple more minutes they decided to make one more statement before leaving. "Thanks for all you help." As soon as they were gone, the chatting and laughing began. I can't say that I blame them. They were just going about their day-to-day business and were ALL treated as if they'd done something wrong.

All I can think about now is that my sweet Little I will most likely experience this hatred someday! What you won't be able to tell by looking at him is that he was raised in a loving family who've taught him how to be a responsible citizen as well as a godly young man. You can't know what a person is like by looking at them!

Little I finally sat down in Tony's chair at 5:30. By the time he was finished at 6, we only had time to drive-thru for dinner on our way to church.

I'm not sure we'll be going back to Tony's shop again. He gives an incredible haircut, but I don't know that I want to go through all of that again.

This Post May Contain TMI (too much information)

Well, today I had my lovely bi-annual "boob appointment," as my kids call it.

All is well!:) We have to keep an eye on the spot that is 7 cm in size. No change, no growth, happy day! These ultrasound appointments are not nearly as fun as the ones when I was able to see a precious life growing and taking form inside of me. They are more fun, though, than the pics I had taken when I had an ovarian cyst rupture.

I also thought I had found a new spot that needed to be checked. No worries there, either, just dense tissue (which I happen to have LOTS of).

On another note, Cowboy and I are wearing dark clothing today to remind us of the horrible death our sweet Jesus died for our sins. We will wear our bright clothes on Easter to celebrate His resurrection and our eternal life in Him!

West Side Story--Little I Version

Apparently yesterday while I was on an adoptive couples marriage retreat Little I was engaged in a bit of a brawl. He didn't get injured and there was no physical contact. This was a DANCE OFF.

SS, a 5-year old, and Little I were battling for several minutes. I'm so grateful for video cameras!!! I would have been heartbroken to have never seen this brawl. The video is about 6 minutes long and there's a whole lot of, "Take this!", "Check this out!", and "Check it!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSsix4NGgiU


I am not technically savvy enough to put the video on this post, but check it out if you've recently emptied your bladder!

Enjoy

RSF

We're probably the only family around who still has the old CD of Right Said Fred's "I'm Too Sexy" song.

Anyway, today C-Man and Little I were headed outside to jump on the trampoline and C-Man was looking for some good tunage to listen to while they jumped.

I found the CD and knew it'd be a hit.

My boys jumped for a good hour listening to that CD over and over again. I could also hear Little I screaming to the top of his lungs, "I'M TOO SEXY!"

I'm a proud mama!

By the way, the whole CD consists of:
1. 7" VERSION
2. EXTENDED CLUB MIX
3. BETTY'S MIX
4. INSTRUMENTAL
5. CATWALK MIX
6. TUSHAPELLA
7. SPANISH VERSION

Can you imagine? The whole thing was just different renditions of the same song.

I'm too sexy for this post....

Miss B's Mouth

OK, Miss B just saw that I was posting about C-Man's cavity and asked me to tell everyone that she had no cavities.

This is true! No cavities!!! She has, however, had 11 or 14 (I have a horrible memory) teeth pulled by the dentist and is on her 2nd set of braces. ;)

Speaking of her mouth, she has spoken such kindness over the past week and a half. Her words have been like honey! What a blessing! She's precious and I'm proud of the young lady she is.

Proverbs 16:24
Pleasant words are a honeycomb,
sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.

C-Man's 1st Cavity

Well, today it happened. The dentist found C-Man's first cavity. C-Man was in hysterics by the time Little I and NoBo woke up from their van nap and Miss B & I decided to head on in to the waiting area with the little ones until our cleaning times. I went into the room and spoke with him. He was so upset, wondering how bad the cavity would hurt. I explained, just as the dentist and hygienist had, that the cavity was not hurting him now, but would eventually cause major problems.

Because our dentist, who's a friend of ours, practices on the other side of town from where we live, I decided to have him fill the cavity for C-Man today. I have to say it's absolutely hysterical to hear the descriptions of what laughing gas is doing from an 8-year old boy who's never had it before.

"I don't like this feeling." I tried to remind him it was going to relax him.

"It feels like I'm in bed." Well, he was lying down in a chair but I knew he wasn't speaking of that. I really believe he was speaking of that I'm so tired and have no idea what's going on feeling.

"I don't like the sound." I couldn't figure that one out. I think it was making a hissing sound.

"I don't like how it makes me feel." Good--maybe you'll never look to foreign substances to numb you. (I didn't actually tell him this, but I thought it).

Then we got to the numbing stuff. He didn't enjoy this either.

Next came the shot. C-Man kept asking Dr. R, "What are you doing?" The good doctor was wise enough to not answer this question as C-Man kept asking. Instead, he and I continued with our conversation. At one point he told C-Man he was probably just feeling a little pinch. After the needle was out, he informed C-Man that he had just put the tooth to sleep. A few minutes later C-Man said, "I can't feel my tooth." Dr. R reminded him that he had put his tooth to sleep.

C-Man then began to panic about when Dr. R was putting the cavity in. This made me crack up. He was told that the cavity would be taken out and a filling would replace it. C-Man was given the choice of tooth-colored filling or silver filling. He chose silver.

I'm sorry to say that this probably won't be his last filling. I'm afraid he may have my teeth. I now have a mouth full of silver as evidence of past cavities. Cowboy has the good teeth--not a cavity until adulthood. Seriously, it makes me sick!

That's all for today--just ramblings of fillings and such.

But...it does make me think of the pain of sin in our lives. When sin makes its home in our hearts, it decays us. When we recognize its presence in our lives and ask God for forgiveness, he comes in and does the sometimes painful job of drilling away the decay. Although our sins can be easily forgiven by God, there are still consequences we have to live with. Sometimes the drilling seems to be slow. We wonder if we'll ever get out of the chair and on with our lives. Other times the drilling seems to be done quickly, but with no numbing. The best part is what God does with that spot after he drills away the decay. He fills that crevace with His grace and mercy. The pain of wrong choices is taken away and in its place is a deeper, more real relationship with the Creator of the Universe. I just love living in the shade of God's mercy.

Psalm 40:11

Do not withhold your mercy from me, O LORD;
may your love and your truth always protect me.

Neighborly Love, Part 2

Well, the deed has been done. The warriors took their ammo with them. They went equipped with toilet paper, crepe paper, plastic forks, shoe polish, and glitter!

I was in shock when Cowboy and Miss B came home from Wallie World with that big bottle of glitter and I begged and pleaded with them NOT to use the it. Seriously, can you imagine the havok that glitter is going to wreak for months to come? You know, glitter is the herpes of craft supplies. Once you get it you can't get rid of it.

A Congressman Takes up Residence in our Home

Do you remember that a few days ago Little I went #2 on the toilet and his prize was going to be a Webkinz fish he was going to name Bubbles? Well...when Cowboy went to purchase the already-named Webkinz, there were NO Webkinz fish in the store. So he called us with the next-best options.

Little I, being raised in our wonderful home, did the "right" thing. He chose the elephant. When I asked him what the name would be he said "Senator". Cowboy said, "Well I certainly wouldn't have let him give the name Senator to a Webkinz donkey."

That's how a Republican Senator came to live in our home. The only problem now is that we've had to place our Senator on the shelf until Little I chooses to use the toilet again. Senator looks very sad and lonely perched so high up in our kitchen, don't you think?

Neighborly Love

If you send out 3 sweet middle school girls like this...

You should be prepared for something like this in your near future...




I truly appreciate the creativity with the Oreos on the car and the Trix on the front porch, but clearly these pranksters don't know Cowboy. All I can say is, "It's ON!!!"