MOB introduction

hi! i am a wife, a nurse, and a mom. and for the purpose of this hop, i am a mom of BOYS. 3 of them. they have all contributed greatly to my need for sleep aids as well as mood stabilizers (just kidding, but not really!) i also have one little girl. i find it keeps things interesting.

like trying to nail jell-o to a tree, interesting.

i am a C. i am a C-H. (sing it with me, now...)

i am a C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N...

i will spare you the rest, but i bet you have it in your head now!

i have been since my senior year in college, 1994. i am 36, about to turn 37 next week (yikes!!). i have been married to my husband for 11+ years (12 in November). we live in the southeast corner of colorado. although we are both from a variety of places.

i don’t like using my shift key when i type, hence the poor capitalization.

my boys. ahhh, my boys.

the oldest is tictac, named so for his numerous vocal and physical tics. none so serious as to require medication, and we are really praying he outgrows them, but tics nonetheless. he is 8, a homeschooled child for the last 3 years. he loves all things detailed. he invents very elaborate tools and play structures and computers on paper. he HATES writing anything down on paper that has to do with school. with a passion. it is challenging to teach him and i have to try to get out of the box with him.

next is bonobo. you know. like a monkey. climbs all over everything. the first of the boys to get stitches. (that was such a fun day *smirk*). he just turned 6 and is an all or nothing kind of kid. and it is usually all angry. although, he has these moments, where i can see God working in him. and it is so gracious of God to allow me the privilege of seeing it and be encouraged in it. he is also schooling at home, “officially” in his first year, although i don’t technically have to start him til next year.

the third is a little girl, stinkerbell. although she isn’t a boy, she is just as much of a challenge (maybe more) than the boys. she turned four this month, and she has come into her whiney phase with gusto. more like a tornado. she and i often butt heads, she is very headstrong (nah, really? wonder where she got that from?) but also ridiculously adorable. makes it really hard to discipline her.

and last is the moose. i am pretty sure God saved him for last because if we had had him first, i would have sworn off children forever! he is the one that is going to break a limb. he is the one that is going to try to fly off the play structure in the backyard. this kid, he cannot be left alone for a second! he has already had one header down a flight of stairs. that one still makes my heart pound. he is quite adorable and has an easy disposition. although i am afraid he will be as stubborn as the rest as he grows into his fearlessness.

so, there you have it. my kids. my life. i work outside the home while my husband gets his business off the ground. i am a Hospice nurse 2 nights a week and an ER nurse one night a week. very diametrically opposed, don’t ya think? i homeschool on the days i am off. my husband just got an office space, so he no longer is at home during the day, which is a blessing and a curse. now i have to take all kids on all the errands. i shudder thinking about it.

i love my husband and my kids, and even my job. my problem is balance. i love to see what other people are doing in their homeschooling, but i have that awful gene in me where i compare myself to everyone else and find myself lacking horribly.

i know i am a daughter of the KING. and that it is HIS opinion, only, that counts. i know i am a work in progress. i know HE will one day make me whole. and while i long for that day, the sinful human side of me want to hang out here and watch my children grow, get married, and live.

we desire to love God and show our children that love. so that they, too, might come to know Him. i have absolutely no idea how to do that. i hope we figure it out before they all turn 18 and leave the nest.

it is a battle. one i have to be willing to fight. i can no longer be lazy and hang out on the sidelines and depend on others to guide my children. it has to be through my husband and me. led by the Holy Spirit. and i have to quit thinking that i can do it alone.

did you hang in there for this whole post?? WOW! i am impressed. let me know you stopped by, and i will be sure to visit you as well! blessings to you on this day.

join in the MOB blog hop here

turning 4...

our only girl turned 4!!  cannot believe it.  we relived the day of her births, the bedrest leading up to it, all the turmoil and family junk that transpired those last few months of my pregnancy with her. 

but now we have her!  and i couldn’t be more torn between happiness and sadness that my little girl is now 4.  she is still full of sweetness and sometimes vinegar.  she has a smile that lights up any room, and a selfless disposition (as long as it doesn’t involve her animals!) she loves all things pink and purple, and yet can play with the hot wheels like a pro.  i love her dearly and cannot imagine our home without her.

here are a few pics from her birth-day day! 

i made flower cookies on sticks. and put them into a clay pot filled with rice krispies treats to hold them.  these were a HUGE hit!  tic tac kept saying they smelled sooooo good !  (they tasted pretty yummy, too! i might post a tutorial if anyone is interested.)

we did a cupcake tree in lieu of a cake, since i did the cookie planter.  she loved the twisty candles.  it took several tries to get the last candle, though.

her big gift was a new Schwinn tricycle.  it looks like a pink harley!  she had some trouble getting it to go fast, though, so her big brother helped her along.

she loves the cool bell and the dangling cords from the handles.  she is sporting her new dora glasses, too (a gift from the boys).

everyone got to enjoy a cookie.  they were HUGE!

happy birthday, stinkerbell!!  we love you oodles!

Eternity doesn’t have plumbing problems!

Satan knows me well.

he knows my weaknesses and how to push my “worry now” button.

not that i have to let him get to me, but he knows exactly what will send me into tears and anxiety and worries.

this last week, he hit me in the finance department.

we have some plumbing issues.  $1400 worth. 

no biggie, right?

but as the plumbers fixed the issues, we discovered a much BIGGER problem. 

the two upstairs baths are leaking sewage into the basement where the pipes all meet up and head out of the house.  this happens to be in a small closet in my husband’s office. right next to the boys’ room.

drip. drip. drip.

ewwwwww.

haven’t been able to get an estimate yet.  apparently all the plumbing from the sinks, bathtub and 2 toilets have to be replaced.  it requires permits, and holes in the walls and floor. 

sigh. 

and this right on the heels of replacing our gas stove because it is really, really old and burns little hands if touched when the oven is on.

oh, yeah, and we went ahead and got the new dishwasher because we thought we were in a good place to do so and my husband really hates doing dishes by hand! (i love that man!!)

oh, and did i mention that my husband’s car needed new brakes?

and that i am making a trip out to north carolina to visit my uncle who has taken a significant turn for the worse with his ALS and is now on Hospice?

*sigh*

satan knows just how to push me over the edge.

thank goodness, my GOD is so much bigger than all of this.

it is only money.

this is only a temporary home.

eternity won’t have any plumbing issues!

i have a hope, a secure place in Heaven because i love my Savior and believe He died for me on the cross, and rose again!

the Holy Spirit can take this on for me and relieve me of my worries.

thank you, GOD!

Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD.

Ps 31:24

getting back there...

lately, i have been sort of missing in action from family life.

i am here physically, but mentally and emotionally, and.. well, especially spiritually, i kind of checked out.

the last few months have been especially hard on all of us. 

we have had so many major stressors in the last year or so, and i think everything just tumbled down onto me at once. 

see, i am really good at pushing the worries and stress way down deep.  but then, as all good volcanoes do, i erupt and pour hot molten lava on everything (and everyone) in my path, leaving a trail of destruction.

i have done lots of damage these last few months in particular.  i had to return to work full time and that was a big adjustment.  the KISA has been working to get his business off the ground, but the only time he can work is when i am not working, so our marriage has taken a hit or two.

it feels like we are in crisis management mode and on auto pilot.

the groceries got so far down the other day, we were out of just about everything.

and i can’t figure out how to get back..

back to where i loved God and prayed to Him and depended on Him. 

back to where i liked my kids and my husband. 

back to where i wanted to do more than eat and lay around and do nothing but watch reruns of Grey’s Anatomy (i know, i am really laying it all out there for ya).

back to where my prayer journal had prayers in it. 

and my gratitude list was full of gifts.

back to where i looked forward to spending the evening with my husband.

back to where my smile was genuine, and lit up my face.

maybe i need to stop lamenting about what i left behind and look forward to what is ahead.  it is just that the path seems so gray.  not dark or light... just full of fog. 

God hasn’t left me.  i cannot blame Him.  but somehow, i have to find my way to Him. 

Daybook

Outside my window...it hasn’t decided whether or not it is going to rain.  it keeps getting cloudy and windy, but nothing happens.

i am thankful for... our neighbor, karen, who dropped off a coloring book for the kids this morning.  she is incredibly thoughtful and has left gifts at our door before for them, always biblically oriented.

from the learning room... i downloaded a bunch of worksheets and such for stinkerbell to do in school this week, focused on the letter B.  she loves working with dry erase markers and scissors.  i used almost a whole printer cartridge printing them out.  *sigh*

from the kitchen... crumb topped tilapia tonight with mashed potatoes (kids aren’t too thrilled with rice) and fruit

i am wearing... jeans and my eeyore sweatshirt.  it is cold in here today

i am creating... lesson plans in my head.  more grandiose ideas that probably won’t come to fruition because i am horrible at follow through

i am going... to take tic tac to the dentist, pick up my paperwork at HR and then try to clean stinkerbell’s closet!

i am reading... 31 days to clean.

i am hoping and praying... that this new job change is going to be all we hope from it.

i am hearing... children dancing in the living room to “Elijah” and the Singing Bible

around the house... are small piles of laundry, toys and dishes.  the norm.  the dining room table is covered in stinkerbell’s school supplies and the kitchen cupboards have children’s artwork all over them.  i think my father must have a heart attack when he comes over. 

one of my favorite things... when my dad drives up for a visit.  he always brings a dozen or so doughnuts and we sit down, have a doughnut and a cup of coffee before he runs his errands. 

a few plans for the rest of the week...i have new hire orientation wed-fri and then i work in the ER on sunday.  we will be able to go to church in the morning, though.  i am looking forward to going to church every week instead of every other. 

i am rejoicing... that God has allowed me to have a quieter voice this week.  i feel that i have managed to hold my tongue better than usual.  i did lose it a couple of times, but i was able to reign it in before i got too loud.  i am really trying to stop yelling at the kids.  it doesn’t do anyone any good.

here is a picture thought:

he has been climbing into any open box/basket... then getting stuck!

have a wonderful week!

linking up to simple woman’s daybook. 

simple woman’s daybook

how i wish life were simple.  things are just way too crazy for words most days, let alone thinking.  i cannot even seem to come up with an original thought these days.  conversations are constantly interrupted, children are always bickering, laundry is always mutiplying, messes are always being discovered (they are too sly to make them in front of me anymore), dishwashers are breaking, basements are backing up, and someone is always sick.

on the flip side, squeezy hugs from mommy are always in high demand, tickle practice is a must, the chaos means my children are still young enough for me to have some influence (please, God, let it be positive), our furniture and carpet aren’t new and can handle 4 kids and a dog, the 6-tooth wonder can melt me with his big magoo grin, jigsaw puzzles are more fun with several people, and there are plenty of opportunities to show my children how much i need Jesus as my Savior and to point them to the gospel so that they can see their need as well.

so, for today...

outside my window...

there is a gentle breeze making the swings move in time.  the yard in nicely shaded now that the trees have gotten their leaves in

i am thinking...

that i am grateful my husband cancelled small group tonight.  i don’t think i have enough energy to get the house up to ‘company’ level while battling this head cold

i am thankful for...

our ROKU player and Netflix account.  they are providing moments of peace and quiet, commercial free, so that i can rest

from the learning room...

not much the last few days.  this head cold has left me pretty useless.  i even have laryngitis so i cannot read anything aloud.  pretty much means school isn’t happening since our curriculum is driven mostly by going through read alouds

from the kitchen...

i need to cook tonight, so i will be making another e-mealz recipe.  so far we have really enjoyed the recipes from our subscription.  tonight it is a chicken pasta toss with pesto

i am wearing...

capris and a mickey mouse tee

i am going...

absolutely nowhere.  this upper respiratory thing is kicking my butt

i am reading...

 i just started ann voskamp’s book.  i have been counting my gifts for a while, but i think my lists are going to be changing after reading her book

i am praying...

for a little boy named isaac who had to be rushed to the ER on mother’s day for respiratory distress.  he is thankfully doing better today, but is still in the hospital.

i am hearing...

Life at the Pond on our HisKids radio while everyone eats their tuesday tortillas

around the house...

evidence of small children... a sinkful of dishes, toys scattered around the living room and on the stairs, a stray sippy cup with questionable contents, a dog under the table picking up the cheerios that the baby throws down for her.

one of my favorite things...

see above

a few plans for the rest of the week...

work tomorrow and then the weekend, get better (!) and get my voice back (like i have any say in this whatsoever), cook, clean and all the other household tasks that need done

here is a picture thought

slowly…

each week i tell myself that i am going to count up my gifts.  and each week it seems like i fail.  but, this week, thanks to illness, i have been on the computer a little more, and managed to get some down.  whew.

246.  turning one 

247.  turning 6

248.  daddy love

249.  a new job with a promise of less time away from home

250.  Lay’s stacks with french onion dip

251.  jellybeans at 50% off

252.  new crayons

253. newly sharpened pencils

254. vanilla ice cream with salted peanuts and Special Dark syrup

255. easy recipes that i can make ahead of time so that my family still eats a meal when i am at work

256. beautiful, handmade sentiments from my children on mother’s day… unprompted! 

257.  a gorgeous ring from my husband given on the eve of mother’s day

258.  my minivan

259.  gorgeous weather that allows me to open up the windows all day

260.  no need for air conditioner or heater for a time

261.  chocolate chunk cookies

262. bedtime clocks

263.  chore wheels

264.  dinner and games with friends

265. Little People

266. coffee freshly brewed

267. curly, blonde scalp fuzz (cannot really call it hair)

 

join in counting up your gifts with ann at a holy experience.  click the button below to join in, read about others and be blessed!