Busyness

What a week!! For a short week we've sure managed to fill it up so we come to Friday feeling like it's been extra long!! All good stuff - just lots of it!

As the school year draws to an end we have so many more functions to attend - even though we homeschool. Recitals, concerts and year end workshops and so much more. Our homeschool co-op does a fabulous job of showcasing all the kid's hard work from the year. This evening was my daughter's fiddle recital. It was tons of fun and she even danced with 3 other kids to some of the Celtic fiddle music. She did such a good job!! Pictures will be coming - my friend Simply Stork took pictures for me - Thank you, Simply! She's an excellent photographer with a camera that works - unlike me :0). Pop on over to see her - she's lots of fun!

The weather has really changed and it seems like summer with arrive after all! Sunshine is breaking out all over!!

I'm so happy - my garden is springing up with amazing speed. So far I've seen radish sprouts, tiny green onions are showing up, the peas - snow and sugar snap - have appeared, purple chard has popped up and the cucumbers have been sighted!! My pole beans are beginning their climb, yellow wax, burgundy king, fillet and Romano bush beans have all been springing up and a few zucchinis are making an appearance. I'm still waiting on the fingerling potatoes and the carrots, winter squash and the pumpkins. They'll arrive soon with the sun warming up the soil like it has the last couple of days. My tomato and lettuce starts are happily adding new growth along with my marigolds and cosmos that I planted to bring the bees to my yard.

I've also been able, with this lovely weather, to start hanging our clothes outside on the line. My sweet hubby got out my line early one morning this week before he left for work - he even wiped it all down for me. What a honey!! Normally I don't enjoy laundry chores (okay - normally I hate laundry chores - mainly because the minute you think the job is done a basket gets filled up with more dirty clothes!!) But I do love hanging our clothes early in the morning and then taking those crisp, sweet smelling clothes down in the afternoon and folding them right there - listening to the birds and the kids playing and looking at my garden!! It's never a chore then - it's a blessing!
I am so grateful that God has given me this home and family to care for!! Some days are rather yucky and others are filled with treats - but whatever the day holds I know it is a privilege to do this task God has put in front of me!!!

Home Again, Home Again Jiggety Jig

After a wonderful, restful long weekend visiting my parents we are home again. I so very badly want to post pictures but our camera is most sadly deceased. I'm anxious to go out and get a new camera right away because now that I know what to do with all my pictures (post them here :0) I find it hard to be without one. Thankfully my husband is less hasty than me and so we will be shopping sanely with some research to find a good camera for a reasonable price.

So once again I'm asking for my friends to use their imagination.

Our weekend had a bit of a rocky start as Esther came down with a case of Roseola complete with fever, fussing and a beautiful measles style rash. Poor baby wasn't very happy for a while. She did look amazing though with pink freckles all over!!

We left our home before dawn for the long drive to avoid holiday traffic and to enjoy the peace of sleeping babies (who while they are awake dislike car seats with a passion) It was a lovely, quiet drive through farmland and deep forests, clear cuts and small towns to arrive at Grandma and Papa's house very near the Pacific coast on the edge of the rain forest.

While we were visiting we got to enjoy the company of many different kinds of birds, chipmunks, and the local elk herd who grazed right across the street - so amazingly beautiful!!

We baked Grandma a birthday cake and carefully decorated with an abundance of sprinkles loving placed with little fingers one by one with intense concentration -fun to watch for sure (man I wish my camera was working!!!)

The weather was beautiful - sunny with a few clouds sailing by. We walked to the nearby stream and played - finding frogs and little fish and throwing rocks. We went to the ocean beach and played in the sand and ran from the waves (with only one falling in but many getting good and wet - brrr - that water is cold!!) We played games, wrestled with Papa, colored pictures, ate great food and some of the big ones shot guns with Papa. And of course Mom and I talked and talked and talked :0)!!

Oh, what a wonderful time we had!!! God knew I needed this blessed time with my parents! How I love them!! This was memory making time for sure!!

Now, on with real life again. I hope the peace and rest I found this weekend will hang with me even when things get crazy again!!!

Finally Listening

Sometimes God steps in and makes a person listen - even when they don't really want to - not that I would ever be such a person - no not me!! Ha ha ha!

For a while I'd been convicted about how much time I was spending on the computer. And being the always obedient person that I am - I immediately listened and cut back - NOT!!

I won't say God broke our computer but when it did break down He did bring to mind how much more productive I was and how much more time I spent doing things with my children.

Now, I was not spending all day on the computer (or even half the day :0) - but it was stealing time I should have been using differently.

So, this week - even though my computer was fixed I spent the time doing things like planting my garden and baking and tending a fussy, teething baby.

My garden is starting to come together - I'm so happy - the kids and I got it all in before we leave town this weekend!!
So I've enjoyed this impromptu blogging break!! We are going to spend this weekend with Grandma and Papa celebrating Grandma's Birthday!!! We are looking forward to it!! I am planning to work computer time into my schedule when I get back home next Tuesday. Guilt free computer time is so much more fun!!!

Hope your Memorial Day weekend is wonderful!!!

Back!!!!

I'm back!!! Computer is fixed and I don't have to use the laptop. I'm so glad - the laptop is just hard for me to use. But - I guess the memory card on my camera is toast so I can't take any pictures. I actually lost a whole bunch of great pictures when it went bad - I'm bummed. I won't ever keep so many pictures on my memory card again!!!

Other good news - the sun is supposed to come out at long last in time for the weekend!!! We've had so much rain and cold. We do have to get through one more cloudy and chilly day (starting out in the 30's temp wise) but then warm in the upper sixties - yahoo!!!! Short sleeves and flip flops (actually I've been wearing my flip flops for a while - pretending it's warm enough cause I hate shoes - but my toes have been very cold!!!).

This is what I'm hoping to do all weekend (well, church of course but this is the only other thing):
Dig!!!!! All Saturday!! Just dig!! My garden needs me to just dig! Then all next week I can plant my seeds!! I can't wait!! I just am aching to dig!!

Hope your weekend is filled simple joys like digging!!!

Rhubarb Galore

Well, I still don't have my regular computer - it's still sick - so it's laptop for me. My camera is acting up anyway so I can't seem to take pictures. It keeps telling my there is a problem - I hope to figure that out. Computers stuff is supposed to make everything easier - Bah!! Oh, well. This kind of stuff is job security for my hubby. All that to say - imagination is needed to read this post.

I was given about a bushel of fresh rhubarb yesterday! Yum! So today we took care of it all. I gave the kids all knives and set them to slicing it all up - even Jacob loved doing it - he kinda mauled it but he had fun :0)!! They got it all cut in just a little over an hour. Sam was just awesome - he sat there after everyone else pooped out and finished the last few stalks. Then Ruthie and I made 5 pies, 2 crisps and a double batch of sauce. The pies are for the freezer, one crisp is for dinner tonight - reward for all their work :0)!! The other crisp is for our neighbor (he just had his second back surgery in two weeks and now has a bad cold - he's had a rough time of it and needs some cheering up!!) And the sauce is just to put on whatever we feel like!

It feels good to already be putting stuff up for fall and winter. It's one of my favorite things about summer (although summer is definitely NOT arrived here - the weather still can't decide what to do - seems a bit March-like today!!) I feel very productive when I'm busy filling the freezers and the canning shelves.

Well, now comes the fun part - cleaning up the kitchen (looks like a bomb went off in there - a bomb made of flour and brown sugar :0) Back to work!!

Blessings

I still don't have my computer so I can't put any pretty pictures up for Mother's Day. I spent some time trying to get a picture off the internet but can't figure it out and since the elusive sunshine has finally come out for a little while I am just going to give up on the picture stuff.

So I want to say Blessed Mother's Day to my friends and to my Mom and Sister who I know read this. I have so many things I could say about Motherhood and how wonderful it is but I'm going to go outside and make mud pies with the kids (really - I am - they are all out there waiting for me to taste their creations!)

So Happy, happy, happy Mother's Day!!!

Uhhh, Houston, We Have A Problem!

It seems our computer is sick - and needs to go off to the computer hospital again. Hubby thinks it's not a virus this time but a hardware problem. So, surgery for the poor thing this time. I have access to my Hubby's laptop for the moment.

It truly has been an interesting week. I'm sitting here nursing a feverish, fussy baby - listening to my others sniff and cough - colds have appeared again in our midst. My husband received some somewhat unexpected news at work that was difficult and demoralizing for him and worrisome for me. Our budget will be impacted for sure. So life hasn't appeared to be very much fun around here.

BUT....There are positives - the time away from my computer has been well spent and actually has been a blessing. Guess what I did with my time? I made goat cheese!!! It was really fun. I also have spent more time with the kids. As I type that I'm thinking how very silly that sounds - have I really allowed this machine to steal my time with my children? Isn't that why I stay home? Wow, guess that is a good lesson learned!

As far as my husband's job - I'm thankful he has a job. We still will eat, we still will sleep in our own beds, we still will be able to clothe our children. For all this I'm very grateful! It isn't easy to be told that our budget is impacted because my husband just got the short end of the stick in the budget crisis his company is experiencing! But I was hit this Sunday during the sermon with how badly I want a deeper relationship with Jesus - you know the kind the Scripture talks about - the Bride and Bridegroom kind. This news may be the catalyst to get me there. Depending on God every time I grocery shop and head to the thrift store for kids clothes is faith growing for me. Seeing again how God cares about the small things in our life is an awe inspiring thing - how this very big God - knows that our pantry needs to be filled is amazing. How touched I am that He allows me to approach Him for our every need!

And guess what? As I write this the sky is clearing after many days of nothing but rain, rain and more rain!!! I can see patches of blue - what a welcome sight!!!!

I will admit one thing though, I can't think of one reason to be joyful about the cold germs that are once again invading the place. Sorry - just can't :0)!!!

This writing isn't just a way to tell my woes - it really is a way to say that I'm looking for joy and I'm excited to see how God will work. I know He's Good and that He hears me and I'm so glad for His presence in my life - more than glad - amazed, delighted, humbled and in awe that He chooses to be involved!!!! What a great God we have - He sent His Son to take the punishment for my sins and then allows me to speak to Him for my daily and hourly needs! Amazing!!!

A quick update: My friend Cinnamon over at Knights and Maidens Gathering mentioned that there is a way to be joyful about our colds - ready? - here it is - I can be thankful it's not lice!!! Hahahahaha! I can't stop laughing!! She's so right! I am thankful it's not lice - very, very thankful!!

Birthday! Birthday!

May 2 - my sweet littlest boy turns four - for real - he was convinced he turned four on Valentines Day. But this is it - for real - my baby boy is not a baby any more!! He's a big boy for real!


And what a wondrous little boy he is. Born nine minutes after we arrived at the birth center that Spring day four years ago - we left home and returned with a baby three hours later in time to say Good Morning to our others and introduce them to their new brother before breakfast.

And he's been on the move ever since!!

His imagination keeps him ever busy and never bored!! Sticks have immense potential in his hands - in fact I rarely see him without one when he's outside. His collection of special sticks is ever growing.

Movement is the name of the game:

But in all his busyness he always has time for affection and love. His brothers and sisters are his best ever playmates. Many times a day he runs up to me and says,"Mommy, mommy guess what? I love you bery, bery, bery buch!!!" And then with a big sloppy boy kiss and a sticky gooey boy hug he's off on his next adventure!

Jacob, my wonderful, amazing little boy, God blessed us when he put you in our family!! Guess what? Mommy and Daddy love you very, very, very much!!! Hugs and Kisses and Happy Birthday!!!