If I knew it would be the last time
that I’d see you fall asleep,
I would tuck you in more tightly
and pray the Lord, your soul to keep.
If I knew it would be the last time
that I’d walk out the door,
I would give you a hug and kiss
and then run back for one more.
If I knew it would be the last time,
I could spare an extra minute
to stop and say “I love you,”
instead of assuming you would know I do.
If I knew it would be the last time
I would be there to share your day,
Well I’m sure you’ll have so many more,
so I can let just this one slip away.
For surely there’s always tomorrow
to make up for an oversight,
And we always get a second chance
to make everything just right.
There will always be another day
to say “I love you,”
And certainly there’s another chance
to say our “Anything I can do?”
But just in case I might be wrong,
and today is all I get,
I’d like to say how much I love you
and I hope we never forget.
Tomorrow is not promised to anyone,
young or old alike,
And today may be the last chance
you get to hold your loved one tight.
So if you’re waiting for tomorrow,
why not do it today?
For if tomorrow never comes,
you’ll surely regret the day,
That you didn’t take that extra time
for a smile, a hug, or a kiss
And you were too busy to grant someone,
what turned out to be their one last wish.
So hold your loved ones close today,
and whisper in their ear,
Tell them how much you love them
and that you’ll always hold them dear
Take time to say “I’m sorry,” “Thank you,”
“Please forgive me,” or “It’s okay.”
And if tomorrow never comes,
you’ll have no regrets about today.

Author Unknown

It’s hard to believe you are 5 years old today.

The other day you and I walked to the mailbox together.  We were holding hands and you said, “I wonder if there will be something for me?”  There certainly was something for you!  It was a Birthday card from your Uncle David.

 You were so pleased to open your card.

It took a little bit of effort.  Sometimes the envelopes are tricky.

You were happy to see a Robot card.  Uncle David always picks the best ones.

Wow, you found 5 dollars in it!  5 is nice.

Brother Ethan took your card and read it to you.  You liked looking at your money, but I could tell that you were listening to Ethan, too.

I was glad I was taking pictures.  You and Ethan are good brothers.  Wasn’t it nice of him to read to you?

Every angle of the 5 dollar bill is interesting.

This is my favorite picture.  You looked at me so sweetly.  You were asking, with your eyes, “See, Mama?”

Then, this next moment, you thought, “Yep, she saw.  She’s happy and so I’m even happier.”  I like to see your smile.

Just a few simple moments of my day.  A couple handsome boys, a birthday card and 5 dollars.

5 is nice.

Happy 5th Birthday to our little son.

And, here is a fact about his birth:

He was our biggest baby!

7 pounds and 3 oz.

All of a sudden I woke up.  The room was dark but our closet light was on.  My husband, Rich, was getting dressed for work.  I was startled, “What time is it?”  “It’s okay, honey, go back to sleep”, he said.  After he left I tossed and turned, wide awake.  I got up to check the time.

It was 2 a.m.

Why?  Why did he go to work in the middle of the night?  I went back to bed and tossed and turned for an hour.  I got back up at 3 and called Rich.  It turned out that he couldn’t sleep and decided he may as well go to work.  *deep, deep, sighing* on my part.  After we got off the phone I actually went online for a little while, then ate a snack and went back to bed with a book.  At about 4, I fell asleep.  6:30, and Caleb’s noises, came all too soon.

As I stumbled out to the couch and put Jacob and Ethan in charge of pouring Caleb’s cereal, I felt terrible.  I don’t think I felt that tired since Caleb was a week old!

Oh well, what to do?  I drank a couple mugs of coffee and ate a bowl of Cheerios.  Then, I wandered around the house and yard with my camera.  Just counting my blessings.

Patches is always tired after a night of prowling.

Caleb found another marker.  He loves to draw on himself.  I gave him a bath this morning to make him sweet and clean again.

When I went upstairs, I found Jacob, Ethan, and Grace drawing.  They draw figures and vehicles, all kinds, and cut them out.  We have stacks of original art by them.  They are quite industrious about it.

Here is David, just after he woke up.  He still has sleepy eyes.

Our coffee table is currently covered in Thomas the Tank Engine stickers.  (Caleb)

Decorating for fall.

The zinnias are still growing.

I like to tuck the boy’s trucks and tractors right in my flower beds.

I found these buttery handprints on the porch steps.

Maybe I will sit here later?

After his bath, Caleb spent some time looking at Mama’s blog.  I love that little tongue and his little finger spinning the mouse dial.  Imagine a 2 year old learning the computer already!

Some artwork by little hands.  David drew this picture.

A reminder to live simply, to cherish the little things in life.

An inspiring (to me) quote for homemakers:

“Across the years, the old home and its love called to me
and memories of sweet words of counsel came flooding back.
I realized that all my life the teachings of those early days
have influenced me and the example set by father and mother
has been something I have tried to follow, with failures
here and there, with rebellion at times, but always coming
back to it as the compass needle to the star.
So much depends on the homemakers.  I sometimes
wonder if they are so busy now, with other things, that they
are forgetting the importance of this special work.

Nothing can ever take the place of this early home influence
and, as it does not depend upon externals, it may be the
possession of the poor as well as the rich,
a heritage from all fathers and mothers to their children.”

Laura Ingalls Wilder

(something I read in the middle of last night!)

I talked to Rich not long ago.  I called to tell him that he has already put his 8 hours in, and to come home.  He had to leave a meeting to take my call and he told me that there was an emergency at work and that he wanted me to pray.  It’s a long story, it’s a business crisis that doesn’t involve anyone’s life or death–but will make Rich’s day at work a long, long, stressful one.  I am uneasy here at home, concerned about how much he puts of himself into his job, and knowing that he will be tired when he returns home to us.

And, I am here at home with the little ones.  After I post this, I will start on our day of school.  I will try my best, with God’s help and power, to get through my day with love and gratitude in my heart, even though I am so very tired!

Have a lovely day, friends!

Hello to my dear xanga friends!  Well, today is a day to celebrate—the first day of fall, my favorite season.  The colors are bright, the sun is liquid and pure, the air smells delicious, and the leaves are changing.  It’s time for apple cider, donuts, caramel apples, and stew.  Time to get out the sweaters, start wearing the darker colors and cozy up in our favorite warm blankets.  *Happy sigh*

Thanks so much for all the friendly comments to my last post.  I had so much fun putting that together.  I love that song, my high school best friend and I used to sing it in 2 part harmony–it was “our song”.  My grandma, who is now in heaven, taught me all 3 verses.  Now I enjoy singing it to the children.

I like my blog to represent my whole life–not only do I love my family with a passion, but first and foremost I love my Saviour with a passion.  I am so thankful that Jesus found me and saved me and that I am His own.  I’ve been saved since I was 6 years old and I sincerely love and follow after Him; my God, my Lord, Saviour, and Friend.  Reading His Word is a delight just like these verses say so well:

The law of the Lord is perfect,

converting the soul:

the testimony of the Lord is sure,

making wise the simple.

The statutes of the Lord are right,

rejoicing the heart:

the commandment of the Lord is pure,

enlightening the eyes.

The fear of the Lord is clean,

enduring forever:

the judgments of the Lord are true

and righteous altogether.

More to be desired are they than gold,

yea, than much fine gold:

sweeter also than the honey and the honeycomb.

Psalm 19:7-10

And, here is a photo that I took yesterday when I went for a walk:

Goldenrod

More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: 

sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.

Sweet and low, sweet and low,
Wind of the western sea,
Low, low, breathe and blow,
Wind of the western sea!
Over the rolling waters go,
Come from the dying moon, and blow,
Blow him again to me;
While my little one, while my little ones sleeps.

Sleep and rest, sleep and rest,
Father will come to thee soon;
Rest, rest, on mother’s breast,
Father will come to thee soon;
Father will come to his babe in the nest,
Silver sails all out of the west
Under the silver moon:
Sleep, my little one, sleep, my pretty one, sleep.

By Alfred Tennyson

********************

This evening my husband and I sat in lawn chairs right at the edge of one of our ponds (the little one). I had our 4 year old son, David, on my lap. The other children were busy playing around us. The sky darkened and we could see the moon shining brightly. Two moons; one was in the sky and one was on the water. David giggled because when we threw a stone in the pond the “moon on the water bounced”. It was a lovely evening full of the sounds of our loved ones, the night-time peepers, and the smell of concord grapes.

Please visit my blog at http://www.xanga.com/purpleamethyst76

“Dear Father, help me to face the work for this day

with a singing heart–

the dishes to wash, the beds to make,

the clothes to launder, and the picking up

which sometimes seems as futile as

sweeping a forest floor in time of falling leaves.

I thank Thee:  That I am needed,

that my job in these busy years

is to create a home that will be a

place of warmth and comfort and love.

Help me to see each task, not as a dull chore,

but as a strand woven into a pattern of living.

Grant, I pray, that it may be a pattern to remember,

a pattern of order, and beauty, and through

it always may there gleam the golden thread

of Christ’s spirit.  Amen” 

 -Author Unknown

Good morning!  My house is quiet, my coffee is hot, the dog has been walked, my husband has already left for work.  The pond, which I can see through my window, is steaming in the cool fall air.  The early morning sun is just starting to light up the tops of the trees.  I am content as I sit here at my desk and looking forward to another fulfilling day here at home.

Yesterday morning was filled with teaching Jacob and Ethan their school, taking care of David and Caleb, and baking.  Grace was sick and snuggled down in the covers on my bed.  It was a busy morning, but after lunch the childen all went to bed to read and sleep.  I was able to go out and sit in a rocking chair on the porch and let the sun make me toasty warm.  I looked at a Country Living magazine and even painted my nails!

The time has arrived here at my place, in which the 9 by 13 pan of brownies is gone in half a day.  I made some yesterday, along with a batch of frosted pumpkin cookies.

For dinner we had beef and noodles.  As I was preparing the last of the recipe, I was distracted by the beauty of the view out my front door.  The boys were busy jumping on the trampoline and I made my way down to the pond to take a couple of pictures.

On the way back up to the house, I decided that it was a beautiful evening for a picnic.

The boys were so energetic from all the jumping and proceeded to make the meal a lively one.

At one point, Ethan noticed he had a sticker on the bottom of his foot. “Oh!  I didn’t know I was for sale!” he said, “I’m for sale!  I’m for sale!”  Jacob thought he was so funny!

Speaking of Jacob, he is almost 11 years old and does not appreciate getting his picture taken!

After dinner, he wanted to go back to the trampoline, but I said, “Not until you let me take a good picture of you!”

Rich came home later and the little boys were playing on the driveway. 

As I walked over to greet my husband, he was busy drawing around one small boy with a piece of chalk.  David was stretched right out on the driveway, as happy as can be.  I just thought it was so precious–after a long day at work I am sure Rich was looking forward to getting out of his shirt and tie and eating a good dinner.  Instead, he took the time to fulfill his little boy’s request.

David did the decorating all by himself.

*****************************

I think most of you know by now how much I enjoy a good quote.  Here are some on gratitude:

For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food, for love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures.  ~Thornton Wilder

Thou hast given so much to me,
Give one thing more, – a grateful heart;
Not thankful when it pleaseth me,
As if Thy blessings had spare days,
But such a heart whose pulse may be Thy praise.
~George Herbert

The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart exalts, and with my song I shall thank Him.  Psalm 28:7

What are you thankful for today?

I am creating this blog so that I can comment on my friend’s blogs.

I am a stay-at-home mom of five. My husband and I have been married for 12 years. I love my life, I love doing what I believe is God’s will for me–to be a wife and mother.

In my journal, I have copied down these “Hints for Homemakers”:

*Be creative
*Enjoy each task
*Organize
*Motivate yourself
1. Put plans on paper
2. Remind myself of benefits
*Avoid procrastination
*Set deadlines
*Promise myself rewards
*Give myself the right to make a mistake. Keep laughing!
*Be flexible
*Bring faith into the kitchen and into every room.

I have a blog on xanga: http://www.xanga.com/purpleamethyst76