• Mar. 8, 2008
That's right, I have a blog....

Every so often, I get an email from SiteMeter that says one or two people visited my blog.  Since I haven't posted since November (!), they must be very disappointed to have stumbled upon me.  I got another email today and thought, well, maybe I should write a post or two before HSB kicks me out for inactivity.

Where to start?  Basically, all is good, thank the Lord.  Yes, a little chaos here,  a small worry there, but the Lord is providing all our needs, some of our wants and all our strength.  My sewing business has really taken off...so between parenting, homeschooling, housework, and sewing, I'm keeping pretty busy.  But dh and I did find a bit of alone time and are thrilled to announce that the Lord has blessed us again!!  If all goes as we hope and pray, baby #6 will join us in mid-November.

We are having lots of political discussions around here.  Dh and I were both Democrats in our previous lifestyle, and while I have moved fully into the Republican camp, dh is still trying to straddle the border.  I'm praying, though!!  My father was here today and he is, always has been, always will be, a Democrat.  So we had quite the discussion, but it all remained very friendly, no shouting or anything.  :)

Spring is coming to the NW and I look forward to getting the garden ready soon.  And hanging clothes outside again.  Ahh, the sweet smell of line-dried sheets.

That's all for now.  We are going to watch The Timechanger before we change our clocks and go to bed.  Maybe, just maybe, I'll write a review in a few days.

Thanks for reading!

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• Nov. 2, 2007
Vision Forum Contest -- updated!!

Kim over at Life in a Shoe is having a Vision Forum giveaway.  To enter, one must make a wish list totaling less than $150 NOW $250!!!  of exclusively VF items from their catalog.  Mine came in the mail today, so here is my list, just in time:

Passionate Housewives $16

Family Man Family Leader $15

Raising Maidens of Virtue $20

The Master's Plan for Fathers $35

Of Plymouth Plantation $24

Make you own doll dress kit $19

Cross Shield and sword $20

sub total $149.

adding to the list:

How to Develop Character in Your Children $10

How to Pass On Your Convictions $10

Why Satan Wants Your Firstborn $10

Teach Them to Your Children $17

Ten P's in a Pod $20

The Influence of Older Children $10

The Cat of Bubastes $20

grand total $246

oh, I hope we win!

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• Aug. 8, 2007
Harry Potter!

My MIL strikes again.  After all the grief between us and her about our parenting choices...after the many discussions we've had about why we shelter our children, especially the no santa, no halloween stuff...what did she get for our oldest dd's 8th birthday?  the first Harry Potter book!  AARRGHH!!!! 

While I realize that many people enjoy HP books, we don't.  My daughter is not interested in anything to do with boys, wizards, etc.  She likes soft furry animals and ballerinas.

I realize I haven't told the story about why we moved, but suffice it to say that MIL wanting to control our parenting decisions was the reason.  And here she goes again...all the other grandparents offer the courtesy of asking what to get or at least checking with us if we agree with their choice.  But not my MIL, she just forges ahead.

And in just 3 weeks, we will be spending a long weekend in a small cabin with her.  It will be torture, pure torture.

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• Aug. 7, 2007
What I Should Be Doing...

Ten things I should be doing right now...and why I'm not.

1:  The dishes, by hand.  Our new house, a blessing from the Lord, did not come with a dishwasher.  In the three weeks we've lived here, I've been caught up on the dishes exactly twice.

2.  Planning for our school year.  I want to start back to schooling next week with math and reading.  First, I must find the girls' math books, which were not packed with the other hs books, for some reason.

3.  Unpacking.  I did accomplish quite a lot last weekend, getting most of our books unpacked.  There are a couple boxes missing...which means they are downstairs in the chaos called the basement.  Then there are the boxes of weird kitchen stuff sitting in the kitchen...stuff I don't really have a place for and quite frankly, don't know that I need.

4.  Sewing.  I have plent of ufo (unfinished objects) waiting in the basket, plus my oldest son needs a few more tee shirts.  I also have a business I could be sewing for.

5.  Balancing the checkbook.  Payday is Thursday and I need to balance the checking account and plan what bills we will be paying.  Money is so tight around here it squeaks.  Not all the bills will get paid.  Which is why I should be sewing, to make items I can sell.

6.  Clearing the rhubarb patch.  This would really take like 15 minutes and there is probably enough rhubarb to make a yummy sauce for our pork chops tonight.  Plus it would start to grow again, and maybe grow enough to have a bit more sauce or maybe even pie, before the frost comes.

7.  Folding clothes.  I have a lovely pile of line dried (the house also did not come with a dryer) clothes standing on the couch.  Yes, standing...you know, line dried clothes can be a little stiff.

8.  Making a menu/grocery list.  Due to the aforementioned squeaky money situation, I'm going to try planning our meals for the next three weeks, taking into consideration what we already have on hand and what is on sale.  I will be doing our huge shopping trip on Saturday and need to compare prices to determine if driving around to different stores is worth it or should I just stick with the one three blocks away.

9.  General housecleaning (not including the dishes).  The kitchen floor needs mopping, the windows need a swipe, sheets need changing and let's not talk about the bathroom...but at least there is only one to clean!

10.  Lastly, though it should be first:  time with my Lord. 

My greatest challenge in tackling any of this is that I'm lazy.  Yes, I am and don't try to tell me that having five blessings under 8 is an excuse.  Certainly, having young children does make life more interesting, but I spend too much time doing nothing...watching tv, reading, being on-line...when I should be doing something else.  Yes, I am tired...baby A does not sleep for more than about 4 hours in a row and I don't eat right.  But I know many moms of many who do more in their mornings than I do all day.

How do I develop a strong work ethic as an adult?  And how can I teach my children to work hard if I don't?  Thank the Lord my dh does not have this problem...he works hard everyday and never complains.  But I know my dc are watching me and seeing a bad example.  I must change my habits...and not just for a day or two, but for a lifetime.

My children deserve nothing less.

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• Jul. 26, 2007
Ahem, yes, I have a blog...

Not that I've written anything recently.  Got a bit sidetracked after the birth of blessing #5, our second son.  But I've been feeling the need to get back to this, so here I am.

Lots to share. The biggest change is that we moved, because my MIL finally couldn't stand our lifestyle anymore and decided to sell the house we rented from her.  It's a long long story I will share soon, but not now. 

Suffice to say we love our new place.  We are away from the urban city we were in.  We have a huge huge yard in which my blessings found a lovely garden snake today. 

I want to make this blog a real place...a place where I share real feelings, even ones that are less than pretty, less than complimentary.  I need a place to share all my frustrations and concerns and, of course, the blessings and praises from our Lord.

I've been reminded today that my utmost goal is to be more like Jesus.  Being a loving wife and mother is goal number two.  Because if everything in my life was stripped away, I would still have Jesus.

"Everyday, it's you I live for...everyday, I'll follow after you, my Lord."

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• Jan. 7, 2007
Baby is Here!!

Our son was born January 5, 2007 at 12:34 pm.  He weighed in at a mere 10 lbs, 4 oz and is 22" long.  Labor was about 8 hours long, ending with 5 minutes of pushing.  He's a cutie, with Grandpa's nose and the longest, narrowest feet I've ever seen on a newborn!

What a blessing to be holding a newly born baby!

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• Dec. 21, 2006
Big Catch Up Entry

Okay, here's the rundown.  It's been 6 weeks? since I posted. 

We live in the Pacific NW and made it through last week's major windstorm with only a couple of bumps.  Winds near our house hit 75 mph.  Listening to those gusts rock our 92 year old house kept me fervently praying for several hours.  The house groaned and creaked. All our trees made it, our power stayed on (that put us in the minority), and nothing hit the house.  We did lose a couple of shingles off the roof, blessedly they are near the edge of the eaves, so we can wait to get them fixed. 

The biggest bump is that our entire house shifted slightly (more) off plumb.  Our back door no long deadbolts.  We either have to rehang the door or move the strikeplate.  We have metal screen security doors that do deadbolt, so we are still able to secure our house.  So, again, we can wait to fix the door until our lives aren't quite so hectic.

Baby #5 is about to be booted out.  I'm 37.5 weeks, the midwife says he is about 8 to 8 1/2 pounds, fully engaged, I'm 2 cm dialated and having tons of unproductive bh contrax.  And I'm just plain done.  I'm tired, very crabby and uncomfortable.  My mw swept my membranes yesterday and my chiropractor did an adjustment that can "help".  Tonight after dh gets home, I'll be trying a couple different home inductions methods, with the blessing of my mw.  Hopefully a baby will appear within the next few days!

We joined the fake tree crowd this year.  Our living area is so small and already full of needed furniture, that finding a real tree that would be slender enough to fit in the one space possible for it, would be difficult to say the least.  And frankly, I'm tired of spending $30 for a tree that I recycle 3 weeks later.  We found a nice, slender, 7.5' tall prelit tree at Target for $90.  So it will pay for itself in just a couple of years...and no more needles to sweep!

Our not very old washer croaked a couple of weeks ago and we were able to replace it with a nice front loader!  I can't wait to see how much our water bill drops!  But really the best part is that the older girls can do laundry without me...so I don't have to drag myself up and down the very steep and narrow cellar stairs.  What a blessing!!

Homeschooling is still going, just doing the "lite" version:  reading and math.  After much research, prayer and discussion with dh, we have settled on a curriculum.  I was finding the task of picking and choosing different things for different subjects overwhelming.  And knowing it would only get worse as the children got older was also discouraging.  So when we get our tax refund in February, we will purchasing the Tapestry of Grace curriculum.  I like the literature based-unit study theory of this package.  All the children will be studying the same thing.  We can tailor the assignments to our lifestyle, doing more or less depending on our needs as a family and the needs/abilities of each child.  And over time, it is very affordable.  Another plus is that several families in our church use this, so I will have plenty of IRL support.

Our Christmas plans this year are by necessity quite low key. :)  We have plans to visit the local zoo's Zoo Lights this Saturday night with some friends.  Dean will take the children if I have had the baby...and probably even if I don't!  On the hand, I've heard that lots of walking can get a labor started!

I've purchased all the gifts for our children and just need to wrap them...something I usually do on Christmas Eve.  I had planned to make fudge and cookies and put them in tins and also make quilted square coaster for our parents & friends.  But my energy level is so low...so unless I get a burst of nesting energy soon...people may just get their gifts sometime in January!

Speaking of energy, mine is running out.  I really need to get some kitchen work done.  My oldest girls are doing great at helping keep the house tidy and doing the laundry, but I haven't trained them on washing dishes yet, so that is still my job.  One I've been neglecting the last few days.

May you all have a blessed Christmas day!! 

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• Nov. 9, 2006
Homeschooling Frustrations

My oldest child (girl age 7) is challenging me in so many ways and I just want to scream and cry and throw things.  I'm already crying and I would be screaming if I weren't gritting my teeth together. 

I just don't know what to do.  We were sitting down for school today.  We have swimming lessons on Thursday mornings, so we do school during naptime.  We spent some time doing money math, using a big jar of coins, finding different ways to get to 32 cents or a dollar, etc.  Lots of fun, everyone enjoyed that.

Then it was time to move onto our Thanksgiving unit study.  We're keeping it simple, doing about half the recommended stuff each day.  Mainly, we focusing on the why and how people lived during those early years.  We're reading books and talking about them.  Pretty simple.

Until I asked the girls to copy a verse.  Psalm 100:4b.  Be thankful unto Him and bless His name.  Both girls wrote it once without trouble.  But when I asked my 7 yo to rewrite it, she refused.  Her first attempt had several small technique errors, especially with the letter "s". She really wants to move onto learning cursive, but I won't do that until her printing is better.  NOT perfect, just better.

So, she refused.  I tried explaining why I wanted her to do this.  I invoked Bible verses on obedience.  I told her that she would either do her schoolwork as I asked or do chores instead.  But all she would do is sit there and pout/whine/cry.

Well, I lost it, my temper, that is.  I can blame having a temper on my genes (from both parents), but that is no excuse to lose it.  I snatched her paper away, wadded it up and threw it away.  And sent her outside, in a light rain, to bring up the garbage and recycling bins from the alley.  I plan to keep her busy doing chores for at least an hour.

Of course, then she was all willing to do it.  But this kind of thing has happened before and she should know by now that I will not "go back".  Once I've started the consequence, it's too late.

Ugh, I just feel like such a failure.  I have both my husband and my MIL breathing down my neck to show "results".  Our baby is due in 8 weeks, my MIL will be staying here for a few days and I want to be able to show her how much we've done this year.  At this rate, it'll be about a months work to show for 4 months of school time.

All this child wants to do is read.  And I give her plenty of time and books to do that.  But reading is not the only part of learning, we all know that. 

It comes down to this:  how do I get this child to do what she doesn't want to?  And yes, this happens in other areas, too, like chores and piano practice.  But we have a work for food rule here (no dinner until chores are done) and her piano teacher is quick to notice when a lack of practicing is obvious.  In other words, the other areas seem to have clear consequences.  What can I do about not doing schoolwork when asked??  How do I figure out what motivates her??

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• Oct. 26, 2006
computer woes

I'm at the library, because our poor computer is barely hanging on to life and I'm afraid to even turn it on until we get a new one, for fear it will implode totally and lose all our files and favorites lists, etc.  We are praying that my husband's bonus will come in good time around the middle of November and then it'll just be a week or two until I'm back online at home.  We have already picked out what we want, we are just waiting for the funds. 

So, my friends and anyone else who reads this, :), please pray for a bonus that will come in good time and cover the cost of a new computer, if that is the Lord's desire for us.  I guess we'll know if He wants the money spent elsewhere if some other major expense pops up between now and then, right? ;)

And I'll check in from time to time from the library, and be thankful that I can at least do that!

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• Oct. 12, 2006
Catching Up Part 2

She actually tried to bribe us to send the girls to public school.

Amazing.  It was our last day at the beach.  I'd brought the check for the rent, but had forgotten to give it to her until we were packing to leave.  When I handed her the check, she told me, "I'll give this back to you if you will send the girls to school tomorrow."

I can't really remember what I said, except to repeat some of the things I'd mentioned to her before.  My poor dh, who does not think quickly in situations like this, was silent for a few minutes.  He finally ended the discussion by reminding his mother that he had made his decision and wasn't going to change his mind.

She left the cabin to take the dog for a walk, but when she returned, I could tell she had been crying.

A part of me felt very badly that she was so upset about this.  On the other hand, after all the other "weird" things we do (more than 2 children, homebirthing, non-vaxing, non-circumsizing, extended breastfeeding, sheltering our children from most "kids" movies, no halloween or santa clause or tooth fairy, etc etc) how is it that this thing, homeschooling, was the thing she was most concerned about? 

In the month since then, we've continued our relationship much the same as it was before...except there is this area now that we avoid.  But our oldest dd, who is 7, loves to send Grandma the copywork she does and I did let it slip the other day about how fun our math sessions at breakfast are. 

Another interesting sidebar to this situation came to my attention recently.  My dh's cousin and his wife live nearby.  They have two young children.  His mom is the family schoolteacher...retired...but very anti-homeschooling.  My MIL stayed with them in Ohio and I'm sure discussed this situation many times.  (Remember, my MIL was in Ohio when dh told her he had decided to homeschool after all and she threatened to raise our rent.)

So, when that whole drama was unfolding, I happened to talk with my dh's cousins' wife and told her what was happening.  She was appalled.  It turns out that she told her dh about it, who told his dad (my MIL's brother) who promptly told his sister to "back off".  I'm sure he was a major factor in convincing my MIL to step back from trying to control us through the price of our rent.

Then, a few weeks later, the cousin and his wife, who have decided to send their oldest to a private school, turned down an offer from his parents to help pay the tuition.  She (the cousins wife) said:  "I don't want them to think they have any say in how we educate our children.  I'm not sure how we will afford this every year, but we will manage."

Hmmm, I guess this independant streak is spreading!

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