a blessed Monday

Mondays are usually not my favorite days.  The weekends go by way too fast and to have one extra day "off" would be so lovely but here we go, back to work with the kiddos and usually a mountain of laundry from the weekend.  Both Ehren and I were a bit more tired after this weekend because we pretty much spent the whole Saturday cleaning the house, inside and out for Ehren's colleagues' party.  Not too many came but it was nice to have them over and for Ehren to show them he appreciates their work.  Then Sunday we had the Hanson family over for dinner and it is so fun to watch when the cousins get together now as they're getting older.  They get all excited and loud and just have fun with each other.  So by Sunday night, we were pretty pooped and Ehren was wishing he didn't have to go to work this morning.  Well, he didn't get his wish but somehow I got mine and what a blessing it was.  I knew my 2 nieces weren't going to come today but then I got a call this morning that Carson, my other one year old was not coming today either.  Yes!  I was so excited. :)  I get to spend the day with my 2 sweethearts and feel like a regular stay home mom for a day.  It has been the best morning ever.  I got some cleaning done, workout done, I took kids with me to run a few errands including big grocery shopping and I just loved it.  Sometimes I envy moms that stay home only with their kids because they get to do all their cooking/shopping/errands running with the kids during the day.  For me, most of that has to wait until the evening, after dinner and it is so hard to do that when I'd much rather stay home with my family and play games with them, be there for bed time and stuff.  But today, I got to do that and it totally made my day.  I just smiled this morning and thanked God because He knew so well how much I needed a bit of a break.  Now I'm ready for tomorrow.  It can be hard sometimes to see anything positive or good in our life but once in a while we get little blessings that may not seem like a blessing to anyone else but us.  And in those times we can see God smiling down at us, taking care of us.  Have a blessed week!

cyber shopping

I have this love hate relationship with eBay.  I haven't gotten to actually try to sell something on there, although I probably should, but I do check it out often for the things I want to buy.  It is funny how the bidding can make you go all crazy and you end up spending way more money than you wanted.  Luckily it hasn't happened to me yet because there is always someone a lot more greedy than I am. :)  But I love it how you can find the exact thing you're looking for on eBay.  I have been looking for some dressy boots all over the stores I shop at but with the ugly styles (and in my opinion styles that will be gone in 2 years tops) that are out there right now I didn't see anything I had in mind.  So I was really excited to find exactly the style I wanted in my size on eBay.  But so did someone else who obviously has too much money to spend because they ended up paying way beyond my limit.  So I was bummed but the next day, I found even better shoes, Ecco brand, all leather and somehow I was the only bidder so I got them for $8.  I love good deals like that!  I decided in my "old" age, it is so not worth it to buy cheap clothes and shoes.  Rather, it is good to have a few pieces in the wardrobe that are high quality and with little finds like this on eBay it doesn't have to cost a fortune.  For kids, I almost always buy second hand clothes and I haven't bought many on eBay because to me they usually are way overpriced.  I don't think people look at the price and shipping together because if they did they would realize they could pay the same or less money for brand new clothes when they're on sale.  So shopping around really pays off.  It is harder the older the kids get because the second hand stores don't have nearly as much clothes for 7 years and up as they do for small kids so I do have to get some things in the stores and I do most of it online.  I love free shipping from my favorite stores because I can pick the size I need, I don't have to drive two hours to get there, and if it doesn't work or fit I just bring it in and return it.  I love online Christmas shopping too, my favorite place is Amazon but I did learn for toys you have to buy by the end of October or else the prices go up because they know people are buying for Christmas.  So I have to say, I am so thankful for all the technology we have available to us because it makes living in a middle of Nowhere a lot easier and now when I go shopping for real I can just enjoy looking around and seeing what's there because I already bought everything I need online.

kite flying and so on

This last week or two we've been having very warm temperatures, a couple days it was just a bit too hot for me but I held it together and suppressed the urge to complain because I know very well that we can go from 80 degrees one week to 30 degrees another.  So there's no place for complaining, rather get those shorts and tank tops out again and enjoy the outside.  So today, that is what we did for a while in the afternoon, with all the kiddos.  It was so nice and warm outside (not too hot :)) and there was a strong wind.  So of course, I had to pull out the kite and all the kids took turns flying it.  It is such a simple and fun thing to do when there is a strong wind blowing.  Kids, including the babies were squealing when the kite flew all around and they were trying to catch its long tail. Makes me smile when I picture it.

Today during my afternoon mini break (while the babies are napping) I was listening to one of my favorite Christian radio shows and I was convicted of something.  They talked about a full enjoyment and contentment with our season of life.  I think it is like a lot of things, when you're reminded of it you think "oh yeah, I should be doing that more" but then we get busy with all the stuff life throws at us daily and we forget.  For me, the season of life right now is staying home with our kids, enjoying the short time I have with them and prepare them for life ahead.  It is so easy to complain about how tired I am most days, or drained from the whole day with kids.  It is easy to complain when I can barely remember I once had a job with adults where I could use my brain.  It is easy to envy those around me who to me have it so much better and that is really where the discontentment comes from - comparing our life to others.   I need to focus on our family and not what other people have or else I'll go through my whole life wishing I had a different life when I could have just enjoyed the beauty of my life that God gave specifically to me.  With me, my big enemy is the chores around the house.  I hate having a messy kitchen, a messy house, I like to provide home cooked meals for us on most days and I try really hard to keep up with it all but more times than not in my effort to do that I lose so many opportunities to comfort our kids, to hug them when they need it, to teach them a real lesson, to read or play with them for a few minutes.  Is the "clean" house really worth losing all that?  Because really, there is always something that is not quite done, laundry is hardly ever completely finished before I start the new loads, floors need washing all the time and all kinds of stuff so I am not winning there anyway.  But I am not treasuring and fully enjoying moments with the kids the way I should and that bothers me.  I'm not saying I should just quit all the work around the house and just sit and play with the kids all day.  That's not it at all, but I want to find that balance in life so that 10, 20 years from now I don't look back and think why didn't I spend more time with the kids. They are so worth it and they are so hungry for our love.  And the season is so different for everyone.  It can be someone married with no kids for 10 years even though they've tried everything possible, or a single mom with little kids, having the last of the children leave home, etc. Whatever the season is we need to find our joy in it because God has a plan for us, a perfect plan that we need to be a part of and not watch it float away.

So here is to kite flying with the kids, listening to their giggles and laughs, comforting them when they're hurt or broken, showing them grace through all their mistakes just like God is showing grace to us every day (something I'm learning to do better now), being less tasks driven and more enjoyment driven, and give praise to the One no matter the season we're in.

That's enough sappy words.  You can tell I just watched a sappy movie.  I took our Kade to the movies tonight to see a movie which is a huge treat for him and there I saw a few babysitters taking other kids to the movies and I thought why wouldn't the parents want to make it special for their kids to take them themselves?  Maybe I'm too old fashioned but I'd much rather have a date with my son and make him feel special, showing him I want to spend time with him, even if my free time can be pretty limited these days.

Here is one of my favorite songs that sums it up:

family time

I guess I'm in a writing mood today.  Kids just went to bed a little bit ago and Ehren is gone helping his brother with something.  I wanted to say a few words about what has been on my mind lately.  We live in this awfully over-scheduled society and no wonder we have no time to breathe.  Family Life Today had someone talk about this topic recently and as I listened to them I kept thinking that's exactly what I've been thinking about lately.  When you look at families regularly attending any church and how many of those families actually help in the church and get involved, it is a very sad picture.  Everyone has the same excuse too - we're just too busy.  Too busy doing what?  Running kids around for their sports activities?  Being on the computer or watching tv?  I am so guilty of a lot of things that waste time, number one is this computer.  I have to purposely turn the monitor off for a few hours and that way I give a lot more attention to everyone.  But what bothers me the most is how our kids start at a very young age being so over-scheduled.  Do they really need to be in everything available to them?  Are they going to be better people because of it?  I'm not going to lie, it is very tempting to fall into the trap of giving our children all our money can buy as far as education, sports and extra curricular activities but do they lose on something very important because of that?  Do they miss out on family time, on dealing with their emotional needs, on treasuring their most important relationships?  

I want to be purposeful when it comes to our time as a family.  Maybe it is partly because taking care of all the kids during the day when the evening comes I want us to be us as a family.  I love it when we have several nights in a row during the week when there's nothing going on.  And I understand you can't get that all the time.  You have to run errands some evenings, you have to go to some church meetings and activities, but I think if we're purposeful of our time it can be different.  This year I was very purposeful with one night a week.  Last year I helped with Awana on Wednesday nights which goes through the whole school year.  I helped with 3 and 4 year-olds which is very hard to do in the evenings when they're all a bit tired.  But I think it was extra hard on me because I was home alone with 5 little kids, 2 were babies, 5 days a week and on Wednesday nights I'd have to help with some more little kids.  It was just too much and I felt really stressed most of that year.  So this summer I said no more, with my job the way I am I cannot go to church after my work is done and spend more time with preschoolers.  It was a hard decision because for a long time our church could not find anyone willing to step up to do that, but I thought I'd rather our church not have anything for 3 and 4 yr olds than me not being able to handle my life and family well.  And I'm so glad I stood by my decision on that.  It has only been a few weeks of Awana but having one extra night a week where I can recharge, exercise or get groceries means so much to me.  Ehren and I might make some of those Wednesdays our date time too which is so hard to come by so I'm excited for that.  Sometimes, even if it's hard I think we have to make a decision that looks bad on the outside but is the right thing for your family so it can grow and stay together.  With the divorce rate higher than ever, it is not easy to keep our marriages and families strong but it has to be our priority after God or else nothing else will matter in the end.  I'm trying to be intentional this year about "filling up my tank" so that my family gets a happier mom and a happier wife.  Sometimes that means having my stay home mom friends come and have a play date with all the kids and enjoy fellowship when we can get it, or it means taking time for myself to work out or window shop, taking the time to blog and think out loud, taking time to play board games with our kids instead of watching a movie, going for walks as a family, having dinners together at home on most days, sitting down as a family before bed and just talk and laugh together, and so on.  I hope you can find ways to keep your family going strong.  Because our kids won't remember how many different sports they mastered, or how many kids they beat, but they will remember if their parents were there to listen when they were hurting, if their parents noticed that they really needed them in that one moment.  And I really don't want to miss that moment with our children.

twins

There was a time before I had any kids when I thought having twins would be so much fun.  And I have no doubt the people that have them love it.  But I feel like now I am getting a glimpse of what that is really like every step of the way.  I watch Carson and Aveah during the week who are less than a month apart.  Right now they are at 15 and 16 months old but I've watched them since 4 & 5 months old.  I have to say this fall seems so much easier than last year.  I am a lot more relaxed and sane most of the time :), things are a lot easier with them.  The hardest thing must have been giving them bottles all day long, twice because neither of them wanted to hold the bottle until quite a bit later.  And really that wouldn't be a big deal but when you have 3 other little kids to take care of and feed it gets to be a lot.  So I am so happy that right now I can feed all the kids at the same time, my babies as I call them eat almost everything we eat and they are happily entertained by the other kids and toys.  It is funny but every stage has its hard moments.  Right now I am dealing with a little bit of messes everywhere.  And it just dawned on me that if it's just one of them here you barely notice but you get both of them together and whatever one doesn't think of the other one will.  :)  Aveah likes splashing away in the toilet and with so many kids in the house it is pretty hard to keep the doors closed all the time, but we're doing better now after a couple pretty wet bathrooms and clothes.  They both enjoy taking out all the toys they can get into and the tinier pieces the better and somehow they can make our kids' rooms look like a tornado hit them in about 5 minutes.  And what's even better is stuff they can find and get into that are not toys. :)  It hasn't happened much luckily (other than my absolute favorite and most treasured vase that broke) because the house is pretty baby proof and I don't have much stuff out in the open.  I'm learning that even the little I have out I need to put away but that's the joys of double one year olds. :)  Our day is sure interesting with them around and it changes so much the older they get.  Now they love singing songs, rhymes, and reading simple books which is so nice to see from just a few months ago.

So I'm really glad God gave me this glimpse of the twins because no matter how cute they are, how attached to me they are and how much we all enjoy them, I sure am glad that they get to go home at the end of the day and they're also really excited to go to their moms and dads which is always fun for me to see.  But no matter how hard some days are, I have to say it doesn't even come close to working outside of home and not be there for our kids during the day or right after they come home from school.  I feel so blessed I am able to be there for them and even though it's so easy for me to say I wish I could just take care of our own children, when I look around me and see husbands and wives losing jobs and having to get out there and work full-time even if it's ripping their hearts apart, I remember what I have is so worth it.  And I believe it is good for our kids too, to know that our house is shared with these other kids, they are a part of our family when they are here.  They gain best friends to play with, they learn how to share easier and it is so fun to watch them really stand up for each other and take care of each other.

shock collar

Funny how some silly things can make you happy.  We have a dog named Charlie, a mix lab.  A very dumb dog if you ask me.  Can't learn any commands beyond "sit" and I pretty much gave up on him after a little while or a big while to me.  I think it is mainly because I miss how our first dog was, so smart and obedient from the start and it's just not fun to go from that to our new dog.  Charlie is pretty good with kids though, just loves anybody and as he's getting older he plays really well with them, with an occasional roughness.  Our kids love him too and they are entertained by him for hours some days which is great to see.  Kade is responsible for feeding him and our cat every day and I think it helps with feeling like this is his dog.  The main problem and I think the only problem we have with Charlie is that he keeps running away.    When we are not paying attention to him for a few minutes, there he goes on the road or across the field.  Mainly he just wants to go see the dogs of our 2 closest neighbors and he comes back after a little while.  I would have no problem with that but of course, we have to have one of those crazy neighbors and she said if the dog ever comes to their house again she's going to call the cops and shoot him too.  Wow, really?  The dog that wouldn't hurt a fly.  But whatever, I just feel bad for Charlie because that ended his days of free running around.  We tried the invisible fence and that didn't work at all.  He would just run through it, get shocked and then would be terrified to go back to the fence area after that which only encouraged him to run away as far from it as he could.  So now we have him chained up and just let him lose for a while when someone is with him, which really makes me feel bad but we haven't found a better solution so far.  Then about a couple of weeks ago Ehren and I were browsing thru the sports store and we came up to a shelf of dog shock collars.  We both thought, should we try this?  It is not a cheap thing so it wasn't easy but I thought let's give it a try.  Now, a few days after using it I feel like "why didn't we get this right away"?  I absolutely love this thing!  Finally, there is something that works when he's doing something bad.  If he tries to run after the school bus now, I just warn or shock him and he turns around.  If I go to the mail box Charlie would just go along and not just stay by me but would start running on the road ahead of me but now, with my remote in one hand I point to him and say "No, stay" and he just knows.  He actually stays back and doesn't try to follow us out there even without a shock.  I just can't say enough about my new toy.  It feels like we have a totally different dog.  He does have to get used to it more because after he does something bad like jumping on kids or going for the road and he gets shocked he gets all scared to do anything but I'm seeing he's getting better with that and is learning he can still do things after being shocked and when he's good we reward him.  I just feel good about Charlie being able to run around most of the day now without having to worry about where he ran now and did he visit the crazy neighbors.  So that is my story for today, the shock collar that put a smile to my face. I know, I am a pretty mean person taking joy out of someone's suffering and I bet there would be many animal rights people that would love to get after me but I don't care.  If it helps our dog have a better life with an occasional pain, I'm all for it.

our Fall walk with Charlie this weekend

Anika's 5th Birthday

Anika is turning 5 this coming Tuesday so we had a little girls' birthday party for her today.  She was so excited to have her own birthday party after seeing Kade having his with the boys.  She loved all the decorations we were putting up, the table we did, the goody bags we made for the girls, just such a little girl.  Since 4 of her girl cousins live close by right now we invited them, nana and 2 friends (sisters) from our church.  Ani doesn't know too many girls her age from church because most of the kids her age are boys so this worked out great.  We played a little nail polish game, made crowns and eatable necklaces.  The girls and our 2 boys were so excited the whole time that they just went from one thing to the next and they couldn't wait to do the next thing, so that was funny to watch.  After we were all done they also couldn't wait to play outside and they were playing princesses in the woods since they were all wearing their crowns.  Ehren just started to make a path for the kids in the woods this weekend and our kids just love the little trail he made so far.  So they were in there for quite a while.  It was a pretty lively and exciting party to say the least.  I think it was great and so fun to create memories like that for the kids.  Anika has been wanting real fish for a while and since dad said no to that (and I was only glad) I at least had to make a fish birthday cake for her.  I think it's not on her mind much anymore though and she wasn't sad at all she couldn't get the fish so that's good.  I am really happy that Ani's teacher has goldfish in their preschool classroom and she loves watching them there, so at least she gets them there.  By the time bedtime came tonight, all 3 kids were so ready to crash and so am I. :)

It is just hard to believe that our little Anika is growing up so fast and is 5 already.  She is becoming her own person and it is so interesting to watch her develop into a precious unique little girl.  I love that she is such a girl and loves all the girly things.  Her and Kason are such great buddies when it's just the 2 of them and I love watching them when they sit on the bed or couch together, Anika reading a book after book to Kason.  Or they will play mom and dad, trains, dolls and just seem to be so close.  I was trying to remember from my childhood if I ever did that with my brother Erik who I was the closest to.  All I remember from early years are the fights and chasing and our oldest brother Marcel who had to intervene and be in charge of us a lot (which reminds me a lot of how our Kade is) so I love seeing Ani and Kason getting along so well for the most part.  Ani loves taking care of him, she is just so natural at it which I don't think she gets from me. :)  She is also very independent, very much unlike Kade.  She could care less that she was leaving me behind when getting on the bus to her preschool.  On one hand it is sad to see she doesn't need me as much anymore but on the other hand I'm glad because I know she loves it and can't get enough of social interaction.  It is so different from how Kade was his first year of school, just shy and homesick, which he still gets like sometimes.  But our Ani is a little social butterfly, she feels best surrounded by kids and most of all she loves school and everything about school.  She's just such a blessing to us and brings so much to our little family.  I love my little girl and am so thankful that God let me have her in the midst of our 2 boys.  I just pray we can always be close, even through those tough teenage years.

yeah, lots of sweets but after all, it is for girls. :)