davy makes awesome stuff

Posted on April 24, 2014 by Shanda

Dedicated to inventors, crafters, and 11 year old boys

***

David, 11 years old, has been extra productive lately.

During this year’s spring cleaning itch, I completely organized all my sewing stuff into plastic containers with labels and everything.

DAVID is taking advantage of these newly organized things more than I am at this point.

If he has an idea, he follows through until it is a completed project.

(I need to learn this virtue.)

With his two little brothers stuck like glue to his side, he made a basketball hoop for the basement.

It is put into place with about seven tacks and also includes yarn, cardboard, and tape.

They were thrilled to tell me that it works great.

I didn’t see it until days later when I was downstairs collecting laundry and it stopped me in my tracks.

I got right up close to see the details, laughing with delight.

He even broke the heads off the longer tacks, for extra security. This thing isn’t going anywhere.

****

I found him rummaging in my sewing stuff again about a week later, needing velcro.

“How do you put this stuff on, can I use glue?”

“You need to sew it so it’s strong enough to pull apart.”

“Okay.”

I left him to it, wondering what was coming next.

With a plastic cap, staples, elastic, velcro, paperclip, tape, and legos, you too can make a spiderweb shooter!

****

Yes, he is very fascinated with spiders now, thanks to watching the Spiderman movie.

He came off the bus yesterday with a big piece of yellow construction paper.

He had drawn a spider stencil on it of his own design.

He went downstairs, emptied Christmas stuff out of a long box, and tacked the paper to the bottom of the box.

Then, he took my seam ripper and lightly traced over and over each line, to cut each section (we don’t have an x acto knife).

When he was done, he had a stencil of his very own making.

Next, he came to me and asked if he could use his new Easter shirt to paint his stencil on.

I, of course, said “yes”. There really was no other answer.

He ran off again to work and the next thing I knew, he was coming upstairs with his creation.

He wore it to school today.

***

When I was driving him to practice yesterday I was complimenting him on his inventions and creations and I asked him, “What will you be making next?”

He shook his head. All my compliments had made him feel amazing. “You’ll find out in the news.”

the easter seth was sick

Posted on April 22, 2014 by Shanda

**Happy Resurrection Sunday**

Easter morning. The family all got up and started getting ready for church and then Seth threw up.

I had a blessed day caring for my small son, but I did miss the church services….beautiful Easter morning, I love it and what it means to my soul.

Ethan and Jacob were feeling “off” as well, but they got dressed and went along to church with Rich and the other siblings.

Since I didn’t have to get myself prettied up, I had a few extra minutes to spend on the girls. I curled Sarah’s hair up (like a flip)…but since her hair is so straight it didn’t last long. Isn’t she a darling in her pink and gray dress? I’ve always loved the look of those two colors together and I was so pleased when I found this pretty dress for her.

Grace wore an ankle length black skirt and simple gray sweater, with my cross necklace. I curled her hair a little, too, for soft waves.

I feel sad when I look at this picture because Seth was so deflated and ill…..but I still think he’s a beautiful little boy and I love this picture of Caleb and Seth, they are good brothers to each other. They fight over legos but have the best times together playing and jumping on the trampoline.

This was the best we could do for a group picture.

Ethan and Jacob both threw up during church.

While they were gone at church with their Dad, Seth was sick about 10 times. He was so comforted by me patting his back over the toilet and I would look away and wait until he was done (he was a very violent and thorough throw-upper), wipe off his face, and tuck him back onto the couch. It was a beautiful day and at one point he said, “Maybe the air would feel me better”, which translated means: “I need to go outside.” So, I spread a thick blanket on the grass and we went outside, where he promptly fell asleep under his blanket (I was worried he would get burned so I put the blanket over his head).

(Hours later, after everyone was home and it was late afternoon, Seth again got up off the couch with his blanket without a word and proceeded outside to sleep. So dear.)

While Seth slept I went into the forest to work on the Easter nests. I gave each child 7 eggs with candy inside, a chocolate bunny, a big glitter egg with candy, easter goldfish crackers, and a little gift just for them. David and Ethan got fishing stuff, Jake and Grace received art supplies, Sarah a “my little pony”, Seth a Spiderman ball, and Caleb legos.

On my way to the house, I stopped by the chicken coop and gave the hens some colored paper grass for their nesting box. 🙂

I have to say……by yesterday he was all better and was twice as mischievous and busy as usual….Rich and I both thought that maybe he was making up for the day of sleeping on Sunday. I’m thankful it was just a 24 hour bug. Jacob and Ethan went to school on Monday but didn’t eat. After a good night’s sleep they are feeling much better this morning.

Easter dinner was delicious but the boys were sad because they couldn’t eat with us. Ethan missed the mashed potatoes and Jacob missed trying the lamb. Yesterday evening I fried up some leftover mashed potato patties in butter for them and their tummies appreciated it (comfort food).

I set the table with pretty tablecloths (I even had the time to iron them, and I hate ironing), our easter egg tree, and pastel fiestaware. We had roast lamb, apple crisp, salad, and fluffy mashed potatoes. Rich loved the meal and ate a lot of lamb. It was the first time I made it and we liked it.

This poor daffodil has been frozen several times since it first grew. Still pretty, even with a few rough edges.

The first violet of spring; February’s birth flower, for THIA, and all my February sisters. 🙂

They are growing along the pathway to our side steps.

9 easter ideas, won’t you add the 10th?

Posted on April 19, 2014 by Shanda

My friend Danielle posted the most adorable springtime portraits of her children on Facebook the other day and I asked her if I could please share them here on the blog. She graciously gave me permission. They are absolutely precious, and will bring a smile to your face.

I also thought I would also share some Easter ideas with you, and perhaps others (yes you, my friend) might enjoy sharing their traditions with us, too, in the comment section.

(a glad easter)

Resurrection Sunday has deep and beautiful meaning for all lovers of Jesus Christ. In fact, Easter is my own personal favorite holiday because of the joy I feel in my heart as I meditate on all my Lord and Savior has done in atoning for our sins on the cross and conquering death on the third day, when he rose up from the grave. This is why I believe, first and foremost, that telling the “old old story” to our children should be the highest priority on this important weekend. There are so many ways to make this a special weekend for them, but if I can only do one thing, I will share the gospel TRUTH at their own level here at home, and take my children to church. Soul-needs come first.

But what other things can we do to make this springtime celebration fun and memorable for our families? Here are some simple but lovely ideas:

1. Decorate eggs (bet you didn’t see that one coming!)

You can use vegetables to dye eggs, or kool aid, or regular food coloring. But however you do it, it is fun to afterwards rub each egg with a drop or two of vegetable or olive oil. In this way, your eggs will glow like polished marble.

2. Make an Easter Egg tree

I love seeing the colorful plastic eggs dangling from little trees or bushes outside in the neighbor’s lawn. At our house, we decorate an artificial indoor tree at every holiday. This morning Grace helped me hang it with eggs, ribbons, and green plastic grass. We put our tree on the table as a centerpiece.

3. Make hot cross buns for breakfast (served with an icing cross on top, these buns are “traditionally considered blessed and believed to impart powerful protection.” (quoted from the book Mrs. Sharp’s Traditions)

I am rather busy this year, so I bought mine from the grocery store. But if you would like to make them, here is the inspiring Tasha Tudor’s recipe, of which she always made “a large quantity to serve at tea on Good Friday and for breakfast on Easter Sunday.”

1 cup milk, warmed to 110 degrees
1 packet yeast
1/2 cup sugar
2 cups unbleached flour
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 cup currents
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled

In a small mixing bowl, stir the milk into the yeast to dissolve, adding 1 tsp of the 1/2 cup sugar. In a large bowl, mix together the flour, the remaining sugar, the cinnamon, and the currants. Add the milk and yeast mixture and mix well. Cover with a warm towel, set aside, and allow to rise in a draft-free place for 30 minutes. Add the salt and melted butter, being sure that the butter is not too hot, so as not to destroy the live yeast. Knead the dough lightly on a generously floured surface, then place in mixing bowl, cover again, and let rise until double in size, 1 hour or so.

Shape the dough into 12 buns and place on a parchment-paper-lined baking sheet. Cover and let rise until double in size, about 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake the buns in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, until nicely browned. Remove from the oven and cool on racks. When the buns are cool, make an X on top of each one with a tasty tube filled with a mixture of:

1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar
1/8 tsp. vanilla extract
2 tsp. light cream or milk, or enough to make the icing easy to spread.

4. Easter Basket or Nest for each child..

At our house, we have each child go outside in our woods and make their own little nest out of twigs and pine needles, leaves, and whatever else they can find, like charming, busy little birdies. Oh they have the grandest time, especially my older teenage boys (kidding). It’s all worth it on Sunday, when they troop back to the woods to discover all the wonderful goodies that the Easter bunny (me) has left them.

5. Egg hunt

I have heard they are great fun.

6. Living Easter basket

It’s too late for this year, but another idea is to take a basket, layer it with gravel and potting soil, and sprinkle fast-growing ryegrass seeds on the top. Keep the soil moist and place the basket in a warm, sunny spot. Once the grass is high enough, you can add little Easter toys and figures within it.

7. Do the chicken dance

repeatedly

8. New clothes

Use Easter Sunday as an excuse to freshen up the children’s spring/summer church clothes. I usually buy the boys each a new shirt and the girls each a new dress. I also buy snow white tights for Sarah (or ruffled bobby socks if the weather is warm) and proper footwear (pink glitter of course!) Don’t forget to buy yourself a new outfit, too, if needed.

9. Prepare a Feast

This year I am roasting a leg of lamb. I am also making a pan of apple crisp, a nice salad, mashed potatoes, and corn.

10. ?????

Leave a comment telling me what you or someone you know (like your grandmother) does for Easter!

This one gets me every time:

Utter adorableness!

Here is the link to my friend Danielle’s Photography Facebook Page: InJoy Photography

Happy Easter to my wonderful blog friends! xo

PS, most ideas were gathered from the book Mrs. Sharp’s Traditions, Reviving Victorian Family Celebrations of Comfort & Joy, by Sarah Ban Breathnach

{this moment} my husband

Posted on April 18, 2014 by Shanda

A Friday ritual. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

at the end of the day.

the sisters of the family

Posted on April 17, 2014 by Shanda

a simply wonderful life

Rich and I have two beautiful daughters.

About four years ago they looked like that up there^^

Since it’s spring vacation this week, I had a little extra time to take a few sister pictures.

I bought new shirts for them at target; Grace can wear a size 14/16 and Sarah Joy a size 4, from the girls department.

I waited ten years to have two girls but can you believe this is the first time they’ve dressed alike?

And now,

get ready,

for an explosion,

OF PINK……..

“For there is no friend like a sister
In calm or stormy weather;
To cheer one on the tedious way,
To fetch one if one goes astray,
To lift one if one totters down,
To strengthen whilst one stands”

Christina Rosetti (one of my favorite poets)

Saturday to Tuesday

Posted on April 15, 2014 by Shanda

I cleaned the entire house all day on Friday.

On Saturday morning I woke up and we had four extra people in the house; our wonderful friend GB, with his three children. (Rich had stayed up to welcome them).

I made baked oatmeal and roasted sausages drizzled with maple syrup for breakfast.

Big Mike (Jacob’s buddy and our “8th child”) arrived with Cardell and Jimmy. Ethan S. arrived.

The kitchen and living room was filled with boys checking airsoft guns and ammo.

Trying on safety gear.

LOTS of teasing, talking, and laughing.

The 8 of them ran off into the woods, including Rich and Seth.

I saw Cardell and Seth, after a while, team up …. Cardell even picked him up in order to run faster into the woods. So cute.

I went to go get Davy from his friend’s house, to take him to baseball practice. I left him there to go back home.

In due time, I went back to the field to get him (15 minutes away) and took Seth with me.

Came back home…..for lunch that day we had sandwiches.

I put dinner in the crock pot; 2 pork tenderloins, a sliced onion, a sliced green pepper, and BBQ sauce.

Left at 1:30 with 8 year old Caleb. He was going to a birthday party. We went to the mall to get a gift and I dropped him off at the party.

I GOT TO SPEND ALMOST 2 HOURS ALONE AT THE BOOKSTORE….

While I was gone, the girls joined the guys for another airsoft battle.

GB left to take Myriah to her friend’s house.

I picked up Caleb, went to grocery store, went back home.

Meanwhile, Rich left to take Davy to a second ball practice.

I finished up dinner. We had bbq pork sandwiches, cole slaw, and I can’t remember what else.

Mike made gallons of lemonade. Jimmy took out the garbage.

GB got back in time for leftover dinner and then he got to work in the kitchen. He made 2 lasagnas and a pan of ziti for us to eat after church on Sunday.

Billy-Cat kept trying to jump on the counter.

GB talked to me all about his new girlfriend. (they are both christians) He has a great testimony.

All the kids hung out together…Dave was home again and in his pj’s in the rocking chair.

Everyone colored with little Sarah, including me. I love coloring. We had like six hands working on the same page.

Happy music was playing, we hummed or sang or whistled along.

I went to bed at about 9:30 and that was Saturday.

*****

On Sunday we all got up and got ready for church.

GB sang a solo (what an amazing voice he has!!) and gave his testimony.

After church we came home to warm up dinner and tidy up the house.

Rich left to take Seth to his little league meet and greet.

Mike was here for dinner.

GB’s salad was made extra special with avocado, strawberries, and goat cheese. It was delicious.

He had a job as a cook in his younger days.

He was in the Coast Guard, too. This guy has lots of great stories.

The kids adore him from their camp in the summer. Rich met him last year and they became good friends.

Sunday evening we had bible study. I made a pan of brownies, a crumb cake, and a spinach-dip bread bowl.

The dog ran through the study and then Billy Cat jumped up on Gary’s lap (the pastor leading the study).

David and Daniel had made a big triple batch of Davy’s special pretzels and he begged to bake them up.

It was about 8:00 pm when we got started, everyone around made a pretzel. I just had to laugh.

You roll out a gob of dough into a three foot long rope and then twist it into a big pretzel. Then, you dip the raw pretzel into a baking soda bath, and bake it in the oven. When they come out you brush melted butter on top. YUM, SO SO GOOD!!! The triple batch was entirely gone in no time.

GB played the camp video from last year.

Kids made a fire outside in the fire pit.

They had music playing outside and all the fellowship between them was so precious to hear….so much fun.

I went to bed around 10:30. Ethan S and Caleb S spent the night; the kids all stayed up really really late. I heard stories of Grace and Ethan S jumping in the pond at 10:30……and Myriah fell over wood while running in the dark and hurt her leg. They were playing manhunt.

Yesterday, (MONDAY) GB left to go stay with Gary (our pastor and his good friend of 18 years) and his kids stayed here. My own children have spring break.

They all spent a lot of time outside; the weather was GORGEOUS. Davy caught tadpoles, crawfish, frog eggs.

I did my nails on the porch with kids surrounding me. It was fun to have them here….we love to talk and laugh.

I feel like my brain is fried. In a good way. (I truly love these days)

Jacob had a track meet at 1.

I went grocery shopping, sipping an iced coffee as I shopped; the sugar and caffeine pepped me up.

Ethan had practice at 2:30. His first after recovering from his yucky bronchitis/pneumonia type sickness (whatever it was)….

Grace had music at 1.

I took Emily with me to watch the meet and Myriah watched the other kids. (thank you, m!!)

Rich came home at 5 to take Caleb and Seth to practice.

We had leftover pasta for dinner.

There was a lot of jumping on the trampoline.

I love this picture of Emily and the dog…..she was so good to him and he adored her.

Grace and I had to take Sammie to the vet’s this morning (TUESDAY) for her surgery. She was supposed to go last week but we could not find her. Rich has nicknamed her “Slinkie” for a reason-this morning she ran away from us AGAIN and got into her favorite hiding spot; the drop ceiling downstairs. Jacob had to wake up and help us. We disarranged the ceiling until we grabbed her. We drove through the rain with tired eyes to the vet……..I got Grace a sandwich at McDonalds and we had a sweet time together first thing in the morning.

When we got back home I made scrambled eggs with cheese, ham, and toast for breakfast for the rest of us.

It’s been raining all day and the kids have watched two movies. We watched Secondhand Lion while I folded socks, and they watched Spiderman while I finished up my bible study lesson and took a catnap in my room.

Myriah slept until 12 today….she was exhausted….the sweet girl needed some good sleep.

We had mozzarella sticks and melon for lunch, some of us had pb and j.

In a few hours our guests will be going to Youth Group with Jacob and Ethan and our visit with these delightful kids will be over.

Tonight another guest arrives; Erinn is spending the night with Grace here at our place.

I have to pick up the cat at 6:30.

*****

THEIR FAVORITE THINGS:

GRACE: it was either airsoft or watching our movie. that movie was fun.
JACOB: it was probably airsoft. either airsoft or manhunt
DAVE: shrugs shoulders. has nothing to say.
ETHAN: taking a walk at 3 in the morning. playing apples to apples.
CALEB: when we got to play airsoft
SETH: my first baseball practice
DANIEL: playing airsoft
EMILY: playing manhunt
SARAH: playing in the bath with my ponies and these.
MYRIAH: playing airsoft. when i was president, that was the best. people were trying to assassinate me. and other people were trying to protect me. staying up until 2:30

*****

“I don’t wanna leave! I don’t wanna go to NY!!” Myriah

“I hate how when we get down to the last couple of hours we get desperate when we don’t know what to do.” Jacob

“This game is addicting.” Jacob, playing a new app

“Did someone say they had an addiction?” Mother

“I’m addicted to breathing. Every time I try to stop my head gets really light.” Grace offered.

*****

I had to write all this down so that someday when my life is slow again I can look back on it and laugh.

{this moment} new driver

Image

A friday ritual. A single photo-no words-capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor, and remember. ~inspired by soulemama

…….

The look on his face right after he passed his (2nd) permit test. *photo by his Dad

seth falls in pond

Posted on April 10, 2014 by Shanda

Sixteen year old Ethan was recovering from pneumonia and had spent four days on the couch. On the fifth day, he was finally feeling healthy enough to walk down the hilly front yard to the pond with his fishing pole. As he sat in the bright sunshine, dressed warmly and wearing his straw hat, his little brother Seth played next to him. Both boys were on the dock when I walked down with my camera, and their little sister Sarah was playing nearby, too. She was wearing a warm coat, but was barefoot. Seth had already dropped his jacket on the ground and was happily pretending to fish with a long, thin stick, wearing a pair of jeans and a thin t-shirt.

Ethan situated himself at the end of the long wooden dock with his feet dangling over the deep green water, and I moved away to the side of the pond in order to take a photo of him. He looked like the quintessential country boy and I was pleased that he was feeling well enough to be outdoors. The ice had just melted off the pond a week before and the beautiful water looked irresistible to the young fishermen.

Seth decided to leave the dock and take his “fishing pole” to a large, slopping rock. He was now perfectly placed between Ethan and myself. He squatted down with his little bare feet, in order to drop the end of his stick into the water.

I took another picture or two and all was well. What a lovely moment of a beautiful day. I began to smile and dream about sitting down and putting my feet up.

Just then, we heard a quick sliding and a splash. Ethan and I both turned to look and realized immediately that Seth had lost his footing and slipped into the deep water. We hesitated for a second, it had happened so fast and we wondered if he could simply touch bottom and pull himself out. Our boy Seth’s eyes were huge as he gasped. His little hands were paddling the water as fast as they could go. Ethan I both realized at once that he needed help. We ran to the edge and Ethan stepped into the water and leaned over to offer his arm to Seth. I had my long scarf in my hands to use, as well.

Seth was entirely submerged in freezing water, with only his head above it. The look on his face was so sad, he looked scared to death (a look I never see on his face no matter what dangerous thing he’s doing…..it is usually a look of great delight). He made pitiful distress noises as he grabbed Ethan’s arm and allowed himself to be pulled up and out.

“Seth, Seth! Run up to the house and dry off! You need different clothes on!”

I took his hand and together we ran to the house. I think he was in shock because he started to cry about his shirt and saying it would “dry in the sun”.

We ran through the front door and up the stairs. I took his soaked clothes off as quickly as I could and wrapped him in two towels. His teeth were chattering but he wanted to know what was wrong. Why didn’t he go anywhere while his arms were swimming so fast in the water? Why couldn’t he swim when “he was five now”? It was mind boggling to him.

“I’m never going on that rock again!”

In utter relief that he was okay, I got the giggles as I worked his dry clothes onto him.

“Mom, why do you keep laughing?”

(Why indeed?)

“I’m just so happy you’re okay!”

“I’m glad I’m okay, too. I don’t want to die. I wonder what it will feel like to die.”

“I should have taken a picture of you in the water,” I teased.

“NO YOU SHOULDN’T HAVE!”

It took me two hours to recover from it all….as I imagined what would have happened if we were not right there when he fell into the water that was so very deep and over his head. I have to believe it was all for the best. Seth lives adventurously (recklessly) so I am of the opinion that God allowed this to happen to teach him an important lesson. A little fear would do him good.

Every spring I make a note of the first child to go swimming in the pond. Today marks The Day and for the first time Seth gets the honor: April 10, 2014. He said the water “was cold”.

As for Ethan, after catching nothing but his brother from the pond, he went back inside the warm and quiet house. He took off his hat and pulled his boots off, letting them hit the floor. I warmed up the corn bag and gave it to him, and he drifted off back to sleep on the couch.

We were only outside for 20 minutes.

(the rescuer, sleeping with the warm cornbag on his chest)

being a mama

Posted on April 9, 2014 by Shanda

“the way the ice melted (down the middle)”

The beautiful spring came;
and when nature resumes her loveliness,
the human soul is apt to revive also.
Harriet Ann Jacobs

April hath put
a spirit of youth
in everything.
William Shakespeare

“Grace and David climbing a tree”

Spring’s greatest joy
beyond a doubt
is when it brings
the children out.
Edgar Guest

“going on an adventure”

“looking for the fish”

I’ve been a stay at home mom for 17 years and here in the Northeast, the arrival of blessed spring time is always whole heartedly welcomed by myself and the children. It’s been a cold spring so far this year but little by little we are spending more time outdoors. It is almost impossible to keep socks and shoes on the children, and jackets, too. They are so full of energy and joy in being outside again. They love the ponds, the stream. The dog likes to scratch rocks out of the edge of the pond and run off with them. We haven’t seen a turtle yet, but we’ve seen fish and some bullfrog tadpoles that woke up from their winter sleep. We are starting to hear the spring peepers and frogs in the distance, too.

As for myself, I am feeling content, even if a little frazzled. I have no anxiety, just the feeling of needing to take one section of a day at a time. Ethan has been sick over the weekend and through this week, with *either* bronchitis or pneumonia, we are not exactly sure which. I took him to a walk in clinic on Sunday and he was put on antibiotics, but as of this morning he was not perking up like he should so I took him to his own pediatrician for more advice. Good ol’ Doctor P helped him out and reaffirmed my instincts that he wasn’t shaking the illness like he should. He sent us home with things for breathing treatments and a list of things to do for him like; motrin (for a sore back), vicks (for the cough), probiotics (to use with the antibiotics), lots of fluids (soup and gatorade), saline (for his sinuses), and of course plenty of tissues and motherly TLC. I have the couch made up with a clean sheet and blankets for him to lay on, and a nice clean pillowcase for his pillow. He sleeps and rests. Right now he is watching Duck Dynasty. I hope and pray he feels better soon, he’s been pretty low for about 2 weeks, but like his Dad does, he has been trying to tough it out, only to have his body crash “enough is enough”. He won’t be able to go back to school this week, doctor’s orders.

It is sort of fun to have someone to fuss over. 🙂

Every afternoon I have Jacob to pick up from track practice at 4:30 and Grace to pick up from music at 6:30. David and Caleb also have little league practices, too.

A word of advice for (oftentimes distracted) moms of many: don’t forget to nurture your children. I feel bad because Ethan has been complaining of a backache for 2 days and I never even touched his back or looked at it…..at the doctor’s office the doc had me feel his muscles….on one side of his spine the muscles were relaxed and normal, on the other side (lower back) his poor muscles were so tight, it was completely obvious! If only I had done this simple thing at home, I could have helped him much sooner with a massage. Just because I have seven children doesn’t mean I can skimp on attention and nurturing each and every one of them. I have a responsibility to care for them all, not “over the top” spoiling, but simple, practical, loving care and attention. THEY didn’t ask to be born into a big family, it was my choice, and the sacrifice of time and energy is something I MUST give to them as they grow……..this is something I have been convicted of. A mom MUST sacrifice and do her best to take care of her children …. and the more children she has the more time it will take. There is so much satisfaction in doing our very best with our families, caring for them.

I go from one thing to another, yes, but nothing is more important than the children (and husband, too, of course). The cooking and cleaning can wait. Today for lunch I gave Seth and Sarah a piece of bread with peanut butter and a glass of milk. Simplify when in times of sickness or trial. Give up a clean house, give up the more complex meals, in order to redeem the time for the child who needs extra care. And even on “normal days” a family of seven children still needs a lot of time to be invested in each child; checking on them, talking to them, clipping the nails, checking the ears, going over clothes to be sure they are fit to be worn to school, NURTURE, NURTURE, NURTURE………….they cannot be left to themselves when they are so young. They need Mom. Those little extra things like a massage, or essential oils, or brushing my daughter’s hair for 20 minutes, these things don’t always come to my mind, but it is something I want to improve on in my mothering. (any tips)

Yesterday I sat next to Caleb, checking him all out (he’s 8) and he finally said, “Are you done checking me like I am an ape?” LOL

*******

Seth and Sarah and I went to the thrift store last week and got all this for 2 dollars and fifty cents. A 5 by 7 frame, two Easter baskets, 3 stuffed bunnies, four books, and a wooden “chicken/egg” decoration. Sarah also got a plastic snow globe. It was fun. We like to walk there after I get my Post Office business done.

This is our new boy, Billy-Cat. We love him. He is soft and interesting. When we pick him up we never know if he will nonchalantly bite us. David made this toy mouse for him by hand. I just had to tie the knot on his threads.

Snickers is the only one who will tolerate Billy-Cat. Billy is so new that the other 2 cats run away from him, yowling loudly.

I’m turning into a crazy cat lady!!!!! We have four now. 🙂

And of course, the chickens. I sat outside and watched them enjoy the sunshine. They settle down into the leaves, lift up their wings, roll around, they just love being outside in the sun. We get about 5 eggs a day, which is a nice amount. We have just enough so I don’t have to worry about what to bake in order to use up 3 dozen eggs! LOL

Rich had a business meeting here at our place on Friday and one of the men brought me this beautiful bouquet of flowers.

I made a nice lunch for everyone.

1. Deli platter from grocery store
2. homemade buns (these were a BIG hit)
3. sliced tomato, seasoned with salt and pepper (for sandwiches)
4. mayo, pesto mayo, mustard
5. tossed salad
6. jello salad
7. pretzels
8. boiled baby potatoes, with plenty of butter, salt, and pepper

For dessert I bought 3 dozen baby cupcakes from the bakery.

And that is all the news from our place. How are you doing? I hope you are well and enjoying these early spring days. xo
“You will show me the path of life. In your presence is fullness of joy. In your right hand there are pleasures forever more.” Psalm 16:11

breakfast with friends

Posted on April 7, 2014 by Shanda

We got to visit with old friends this morning.

Karen moved away over a year ago. She was traveling back through the state this morning and asked if Kathy and I could meet her for breakfast.

It felt just like old times.

Leo and David have been friends since birth! I let David skip school this morning so he could see his friend.

They folded paper airplanes at the table. After they ate their yummy breakfasts they played checkers.

I had Sarah Joy with me, too, and she got to be friends with Karen’s son Charlie. They both wore striped shirts.

Karen has a 3 month old baby girl now. Her name is Audrey.

She was a doll! She smiled a lot and never cried.

She was absolutely delicious.

She fell asleep on me as her mama chatted away. We sat and talked for a long time, our waitress was thoughtful enough to bring us fresh ice waters so we wouldn’t get parched. She got a really good tip. 🙂

After a while, we headed into the gift shop so the children could pick out some candy.

Charlie and Sarah played with the magic sand together while David and Leo shared a bag of gummy worms.

Karen and Kathy~

One last picture before we had to part ways again, which was bittersweet.

I’m glad to have friends that are forever.

***

I took David to school late and stood in the office pondering the tardy slip that I had to fill out. “REASON FOR BEING TARDY” What do I write? I was hesitant to tell the truth and almost wrote “He had an appointment”. But I didn’t want to lie. I was thinking, “Is it okay for him to miss school for a fun activity?” “Will he get into trouble?” “Will they reprimand me?” So, I asked Dave, “Why are you late to school?” and he laughed and whispered back, “Because I was at Crackerbarrel?” So, that is what I wrote; “He was at Crackerbarrel.” When I was done, the secretary came around to rip out the slip and sign her name on it so David could take it to his teacher. She read what I wrote and made an offended noise. My heart stopped.

“What?” she exclaimed to Dave, “You went to Crackerbarrel? Did you bring me back anything? Did you tell your Mom thank you? You’re a lucky little boy!”

All was well.

How about you? Do you have special friends that continue to come back to visit you through the years? Or, maybe you go and visit them from time to time?

Do you tell the detailed truth on your children’s excuse notes?

Happy Monday!

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