New Years Resolution

I know everyone has feelings about New years Resolutions. Well here is my thought... it's better to at least have a goal. Sure some you may not meet, but to have a goal is so important. So my New Years Resolutions are:

1. To read through the bible in a year (hopefully doing a reading once a day and not playing catch up and doing 3 or 4 in one day..... ) :-)

2. To exercise at least 3 times a week (hopefully more than that, but want to be realistic)

3. Read some non-fiction books about becoming a better christian wife, mother and woman!

Well I think that sums up what i am going to be striving for this year. I hope that next year this time, I will be able to say I kept these three!!!


May God help me and the rest of you out there making resolutions... to keep them!!!

A look back over 2009

I know i haven't blogged in a while. It's hard for me to find things to talk about, but I will continue blogging as long as I see people still reading it. :-)

2009 was a very good year for me, but not without some trials. The best thing that happened to me was the birth of my 3rd son Jonathan....


And a blessing in disguise was my husband being laid off.... yes it's been hard financially, but God is blessing us and a big blessing is Mike has been able to be home with us almost the entire 9 months so far of Jonathan's life. It's neat to be able to share the day to day things that he has been missing while he has been working since our first child was born.

I also was blessed when I led a bible study this year called A Woman After God's Own Heart. I learned a lot from some very wise women in our church, and also from the study. It is helping me make God a priority in my life and helping me then prioritize the rest of the things in my life. It's not always easy, and I don't always succeed, but I am trying to continue to move forward.

We just celebrated Christmas and it was an awesome christmas. We always do 3 gifts representing the 3 gifts Jesus received (there might have been more, but the bible speaks of 3) after he was born. I got the idea from a family at church, and we also borrowed another idea of theirs and we do a birthday cake for Jesus. We sing Happy Birthday and we also do a cute little idea (also bought by the same family.. thank you Dentons!!) called What God wants for Christmas. It's a little story book with 7 little gifts. You open one each day the week before christmas. The first one is the Angel Gabriel, then mary, then joseph, then baby Jesus, then a shepherd, then a wiseman, and in the 7th box is a mirror... and we learn that what God wants for Christmas is US! :-) It's really cute and the kids really enjoy taking the little characters out and placing them on the nativity scene.






Another thing that sticks out from 2009 is that like many of my friends... I turned 30 this year. My husband did an awesome job and threw me a surprise birthday party, it was an awesome day and I will always treasure it in my heart. For more pictures of this event check earlier blog. :-)

All in all I grew a lot this year. Some changes did not happen that I wanted too... I wanted to lose weight, but I am not giving up on it. I am trying hard again, and will continue through the new year to get healthy and lose the unwanted weight. I will blog about the progress there to hopefully inspire those of you out there having the same struggle. I also grew as a mother, a wife, a friend and a woman. I know the growing and maturing process is never over, so hopefully with each new year I will continue to grow and mature and hopefully become a better person all the way around.

I hope your 2010 will be blessed and that the things you want to change in your own life can happen this next year!!! Happy New Years!!!!

The big 3 0 !!!!!! Yes i'm in a new decade!

Well first off I have to say that turning 30 wasn't as dramatic as it is for some people. I think i'll be more likely to be freaking when I hit 40.... who knows. However I do need to share what made this birthday so incredibly special.

For the past few weeks, my husband has been acting strangely. He said he was thinking of ideas for a gift for me, so he told me i couldn't look at certain drawers in our house, etc.... he then asked me if I would like to go out to eat with another couple for my birthday and I said sure. Well the plan was set, that we would go to Applebees with some friends of ours John and Lena on my birthday around 2:30 or so. I was very excited.... I LOVE applebees!!! Well the day of, my poor husband was having stomach problems (or so i thought). We were on our way out of owensville when he said he needed to use the restroom.... so he stopped at the church. John and Lena were behind us and they pulled in behind us at the church. This might be TMI, but just know it was fake..... John then comes out to tell me that "mike isn't doing so great.... he needs you to come in for a second"..... well I went in, and through the tiny window of the door I see tons of people standing there..... a smile went from one side of my face to the other and i'm sure i was beaming.







When I walked through the doors I saw my husband standing there smiling at me. My exact words were "what did you do!!" and then after everyone screamed "Happy Birthday" I said "you are ALL in TROUBLE!!" then we all laughed.... and as I gazed around I realized how much work mike had put into this party. He had been planning it for weeks, late nights staying up.... calling people... inviting people from my past as well as the present.






One of the best gifts was seeing an old music minister, his wife and kids at my party. They drove about 2 hours (maybe longer??) and they could only stay for 45 minutes, because they had to get back to church, but they came!! It brought tears to my eyes thinking of what an amazing influence he and his wife had in my life at a very crucial time. Thank you Mike and Jennifer Wright!!! Growing up without a father I have been soooo incredibly blessed by Godly men that God has put into my life to fufill that for me. Mike was one of many wonderful Godly men that made a difference and impact on my life! Thank you Mike (my husband) for seeing how important these people were to me and inviting them to my party! And to all of the people in my past that have had a wonderful impact on my life but that couldn't make it to the party... I love you all too!!! Hopefully someday I will get to see you all again too!!!



Mike then did a "this is your life" slide show with pictures of me throughout my life. He had pics of me as a child, as a teenager, playing softball, in band.. it was really neat.



He then had two men sing 2 of my favorite hymns that my daddy use to sing to me, and since my dad passed away when I was 9 this was so special to me. He also had a slideshow going during one of the songs of me and my daddy... so sweet!! It brought tears to my eyes.... Thank you Rip and Duane for singing In the Garden and How Great Thou Art, you both did wonderful!



Then mike had 3 of my friends come up.. Chrissy, Debbie and Lena and he had them read parts of Proverbs 31 and how I fufilled that for him in our life.... that was also really sweet and emotional.



One last surprise I had, was that Mike knew I was looking forward to my favorite applebees meal of Shrimp Fettucine Alfredo.... so he had my mom bring it with her, so I still got my applebees!!! :-) :-)Thanks mom!!!

The next night I got to open presents from my boys and it was so sweet! Thank you to my family and friends... you all made this birthday incredibly special and I am very grateful and thankful for you all!!!

On a Healthy Kick.... hope it stays!!

Well for those of you who read a few blogs ago how I was going to try t-burn... well I tried, but this time around seemed to be different. It made me feel a little edgy, and I just didn't feel good on it, so now I am going to go the heatlhy route. A friend at the gym set me up with a killer workout.... i'm taking a spinning class, and I'm watching my calorie intake. Hopefully those numbers on the scale, or at least my clothing will go down soon!!

My bible study is going really well. This week was about "A heart for your husband" and what it really means to be a christian submissive wife. In today's culture everyone is always talking like "aint no man gonna tell me what to do" etc.... but in the bible God tells us how we are to act, and we are to be our husbands help mate. A quote that really stood out to me from the workbook this week is

"Submitting to another person is an often misunderstood concept. It does not mean becoming a doormat. Christ-at whose name "every knee shall bow in Heaven and on earth and under the earth" -submitted His will to the Father, and we honor Christ by following his example. When we submit to God we become more willing to obey His command to submit to others, that is, to subordinate our rights to theirs. For a wife this means willingly following her husband's leadership in Christ."
Neil S Wilson

Those are hard words to swallow some time, but when we live as Christ wants us to live, there is more peace and more joy!!!

As far as my kids... Joseph and Samuel are doing great in pre-school and learning sooo much. I can't believe how big they are getting, and Jonathan is 6 months old and almost crawling, and almost sitting up... time seems to be flying with him as well.... but it's so exciting to see them learn and then master new skills... I'm so proud of all my children.

Well that's all for now!!!

Heartbreaking times........

Something I am learning, is that nothing is sweeter during a difficult time than knowing you can lean on a friend. There are times in our lives when difficult things happen..... a loved one dies..... a close friend hurts you deeply..... a marriage is experiencing a rocky time.... loss of a job..... and during those times of weakness, and hurt, there is someone waiting for us. Our Savior Jesus waits to take us in his arms.... he holds us..... loves us... wipes away our tears.... and tells us that no matter what.... HE loves us... HE will never leave or forsake us.... HE will never hurt us..... what an amazing Father in Heaven we have...to send his son to us..... and I'm so glad that during my darkest hours.... I have a perfect friend, a perfect place to rest my head and have peace! Even when people on this earth hurt us and circumstances happen to us that we can't control.... Jesus is there.... loving us...




And just to add.... that after he has wiped away our tears... and given us the boost we need to get back out there.... sometimes.... he comes through in such a way as to bring that which was lost, into our lives again. I'm so thankful for Jesus and all the friends he has brought into my life. :-)

Our First Family Bible Night

For the past few years mike and I have always talked on and off about how we would like to do a family bible night. We do a devotional at meal time, and one before bed with the kids, but we wanted to do something different. Once a week we wanted to make a special time that we would all do a fun activity with a lesson that we could all learn from. Well through the many bible studies we have started together on parenting.... and we finally got to one, that we both really really like. It's called Shepherding a Child's Heart by Ted Tripp. We bought the parent handbook to go along with it and we are learning so much. We decided last sunday night to do a family bible night and we decided it was going to be on how we use our words.


We started out with Mike asking them questions, about what are harmful words, and what are helpful words.





Then we gave them some clues.... to find their verses. For example Joseph's was (from a barnyard game) "If Ben wanted to meet you at the junkyard how would he get in touch with you" the answer (cell phone) so off he went to find mommy's cell phone and inside of it was his verse. James 1:19 "Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry." We talked about what this meant, that we should always think before we speak, and not get angry so quickly.




Samuel's clue was taped to the back of mike' shirt... and his clue was "this person loves to wrestle with you and shares his apple with you". So he found daddy and his clue and his verse was Passage James 3:10 "nd so blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters, this is not right!" We talked about that as well.... how hypocritcal christians can be when we talk about how we are living for God and then curse a brother or sister in Christ.





Michael's clue was on the computer and his read "To use this you must have power, but you are only allowed to stay on for one half hour".... and his verse was Ephesians 4:29 "Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them." We talked about how what comes out of our mouth should always be helpful to the listener. If it isn't helpful that it ought not be said.



Then we borrowed an idea from a book called "Creative Correcton by Lisa Welchel". I remember hearing a story on Focus on the Family one time about how her son was saying mean things to his sister, so she had him go out back and nail several nails into a fence. Then she made him take out the nails.

Well Mike had each boy nail a nail into his workbench in the basement. He had them each take out their nail, and we explained what she explained on the radio show that day. When we use hurtful words it is like we are driving a nail into someone's heart. We may say we are sorry (remove the nail) but the damage has been done, we have left a hole in their heart. We cause damage to those around us when we speak in a way that is not in love. We explained that we used daddy's workbench because they see it every day. We wanted them that when they see those holes, to remember to always think before they speak, and be slow to become angry.









This was a lesson for mike and I as well. As their parents we have to make sure we are also doing this. It's hard, sometimes we think as adults we have the right to do things, that we feel our children shouldn't simply because we are adults, but the truth is we still have to answer to our Heavenly Father for our actions. We don't want to leave holes in people where we have inflicted wounds with our words.



Another great verse that struck me as we were doing this family bible night and in the past week is...

Ephesians 4 verse15 Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. verse 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all ty...pes of evil behavior. 32 Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

My prayer for my family is that we can all learn to speak in love, think and choose our words carefully and grow to be more like Christ. It's a lifelong process and it's hard work sometimes, but the reward is also the greatest I could ever imagine. Can't wait to talk with Mike tonight about what we are going to do for tomorrow's Family Bible Night. (every sunday night :-) )

What i'm learning in my bible study....

Ok not the "coolest" headline to my blog, but oh well. :-) Tonight's bible study was so incredible. God is so good and has blessed me with a great group of ladies that are joining me on the journey to be "A woman after God's own heart".

Tonight towards the end of our study we were talking about being a postive person, and also the importance of being a positive mom. We talked about those who were not able to have children, those who have lost children and those who are blessed to have children. We talked about how each day we need to feel blessed to be a mom. Sure there are hard times, but instead of complaining about it, and dwelling on those feelings of negativity, to focus on the positive. Each day make a choice to be thankful and to know that those children were given to you as a precious gift from God, and that we don't know how much time we will have with them, or what kind of an impact we are making in their lives, and their future. None of us will ever be perfect, but when we are striving to be A Woman after God's heart, and we are spending the time, praying, reading the bible and working on becoming more christ like, it will be easier to be more positive and thankful. (preaching to myself here too) :-) Sometimes it's easier to complain, then to give it to God, or to make the choice to look at it positively. The bible says in Phillipans 12:13-18

13 For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.

14 Do everything without complaining and arguing, 15 so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people. 16 Hold firmly to the word of life; then, on the day of Christ’s return, I will be proud that I did not run the race in vain and that my work was not useless. 17 But I will rejoice even if I lose my life, pouring it out like a liquid offering to God,[e] just like your faithful service is an offering to God. And I want all of you to share that joy. 18 Yes, you should rejoice, and I will share your joy.

I'm learning that this comes into play especially with being a mom. We live in a world of ME ME ME ME.... and we view our children as burdens instead of blessings... we need to be a bright light in this world... and what better way to show that to those around us than being a positive mom... there is so much negativity out there... let's show some joy... some light.....



My challenge to all the mother's out there, including myself... the next time you feel like complaining about your children.... the next time you feel negativity, look to your heavenly father and thank him for your kids... thank him that he allowed you the mercy and grace and entrusted these little lives into your care.... and think about how much God loves you.... and he will give you the strength to make it through whatever your going through... and through that... we can be a positive influence and have a positive affect on those around us..... let's all try it and see what a difference it makes.... as a side note... this will only be possible, if we get into God's word and spend time with him.... through him ALL is possible!!





Tonight when I got home, my increase in patience was amazing.... i'm serious... listening to the other ladies, spending time in God's word.... allowed me to come home and be a more postiive mom... and not only a more positive mom, but a more positive person!!! My prayer is that each day I can accept this challenge in my own life. I know there will be really tough days... please pray for me... that I can be a positive mom... a positive person.... each and every day... no matter what trials come my way.....





Please continue to pray for me as I am on this journey!!! Please know... i hope I am not sounding like I have it all together... because I don't... i'm just learning... and wanting to share... and hopefully be an encouragment to other mom's out there!!!

If you do decide to go on this challenge with me... please leave a comment and let me know if it is making an impact on how you treat and talk about your kids... and how your feelings are.... would love to hear encouragment from other mom's out there!!!

For my husband......

6 years ago on October 4th, 2003 I married the man of my dreams!!! We had grown up in the same town, and as we started dating, we talked about how we attended the same youth group as children. I even signed his cast when he broke his arm playing football. We lived in the same subdivision, and my sisters used to give him rides home from school. We never really spent any real time with each other however until we were in our 20's. God brought this man into my life, and I knew from the moment I met... well re-met him, that he was the one for me. We both weren't at the same place in our relationship with God at the time, but over the next 2 and 1/2 years we worked towards being on the same page, not only emotionally, but spiritually. He had a wonderful little boy from a previous marriage, and I got to be blessed by knowing him and being a part of his life, first as a friend, and now as a stepmother.




My wedding day was the perfect day. No nerves, just pure excitment and anticipation. I couldn't wait to walk down that aisle and say "I do!". I couldn't have asked God for a more perfect day, from beginning to end.



6 years later, we have added 3 boys into our lives. We have have been through some dark valleys, and some wonderful mountain tops, and God keeps giving us strength and wisdom and we keep growing closer together. I truly feel blessed in my life. The biggest blessing is knowing that God is in control and he has proven that no matter what trials come into a marriage, if you rely on HIM and trust in HIM and take him at HIS word, then you can overcome it. He has also revealed what joy it is to be in a marriage, to share not only love and true intimacy, but true friendship. To share in the parenting of children, and to watch them grow and learn as you both are teaching them and loving them.




To all those out there who have struggled, are struggling, or will struggle in a relationship or a marriage. Take my advice... TRUST IN GOD!!!! Make GOD the #1 priority in your life and marriage, and he can get you through ANYTHING!!!

Weight Loss... Nursing..... Walk with God

The title are all things that will be talked about in the following blog....

First up.... weight loss. As most of you know I was in a weight loss competition, up until yesterday. You see back in 2002 my sister Krista came across this fat burner called T-burn. She lost about 30lb's on it and had done tons of research on the ingredients, the maker of it etc... and I felt if she thought it was safe, so did I. So i started taking it and lost 50lbs over the course of the next 6 months!! It felt incredible and yes it did have ephedra. I caught a lot of flack for it from some and others wanted me to hand over the number and how much it cost to them. I read a lot about ephedra, the pro's and the con's. I realized that if you use it and still take good care of yourself, you are going to be ok. If you take it and then think you can starve yourself and workout until you pass out, well then you are going to harm yourself. Over that 6 months, I began to watch what I ate, drank more water and started exercising. It gave me the umph that I needed to make those changes because the pounds were coming off and that motivated me even more. Well I got married and went off, because I wanted a baby. I got pregnant and gained all the weight back.. :-( and while I was pregnant, ephedra was banned. Now me gaining the weight back had nothing to do with t-burn.... that was me just going back to all my bad eating habits while pregnant. After my pregnancy I found out that ephedra had came back again, but could never find t-burn in it's original formula. Over the past few months I have tried unsucessfully to lose weight. I was breastfeeding and so I knew it was harder to lose weight. Well I decided to do a search on yahoo on t-burn just to see if I could find it and guess what... I found it... and even better.. i found the ORIGINAL FORMULA... i could hardly believe it. I called Krista immediately.

Now to incorporate the second subject... breastfeeding. First let me say I did NOT decide to quit breastfeeding soley to lose weight. In fact close friends and family know that I had been contemplating weaning him at 6 months over to formula for many reasons and over the past month. This entire 6 months, my milk has fluccuated to the point I was supplementing 2 or 3 meals a day with a bottle of formula for him. Stress over my husbands job and other things in my life also caused my milk supply to go from more than enough, to not near enough. Also he in the past few weeks has started cereal and veggies, and so I felt better about the possibility of stopping nursing. I enjoy things about nursing, and there are things not so great about it. I felt like I would be letting him down if I stopped no matter what the reason, but I realized I was worrying about what other people would think of me.... and that's not a reason to continue or stop, so I had to make the decision for myself. I had decided to wean him over to formula..... then a few days later... found t-burn.

So I started t-burn yesterday, he was doing so good on mostly formula, that I am completing the weaning process with a breast pump (thanks chrissy!!!!!!) I still worry sometimes what people will think of me, but I know he is going to be ok, and that I gave him 6 months of the best milk there is.... and I am confident he is going to thrive on formula. I also decided it wouldn't be fair to stay in the competition so we decided to call it off, but continue to be an encouragment to each other on our weight loss journey's.

Here is a glimpse of what I looked like when I lost the weight on t-burn the first time.



And here is one of the b4 pictures I will use when I lose the weight this time....



I have decided to combine Weight watchers eating with the T-burn to help me. I am also going to incorporate exercise as well. I am not stupid and I know that if I don't make life changes, then the weight will come back on. I had successfully kept the weight off for 6 months without t-burn until I got pregnant, so I believe I will be able to keep it off this time as well. I just need a little help. It made me feel better to see Jillian from the biggest loser on a commercial the other day offering a similiar product to jumpstart your weight loss.... :-) To those of you out there, my best friend Chrissy included... that are doing it on your own... I am SOOO proud of you all!!! Keep up the good work!!!! You all are an inspiration!!!!

So I will keep you all posted on my progress with t-burn....!!!! If you want any info on it just let me know.

Now onto the 3rd subject but the most important. I know this is a small paragraph in comparison, however over the next few weeks I will talk more about this. Above anything else in my life, my relationship with Jesus Christ should be THE most important thing and I need to spend a lot of time seriously focusing on it. This wednesday begins a bible study that I am co-leading called A woman after God's Own Heart. I am looking forward to doing this study with other women and learning from their experience and insight. I will also keep you all posted (whoever wants to be that is) on this study as well. Those of you who are men and women of prayer, please keep me and the other women participating in your prayers.

Well that's it for now!!!!

Talk to you all later!!!

Weigh In Monday

Well to my surprise I lost a pound last week!!! Woohoo!!! And something miracleous happened.... all of the sudden I am not craving junk food anymore... I'm not sure how it happened, but food that normally I would want I am not wanting... hopefully this will last long enough that I lose some serious weight over the next month or two. I won't be my goal by my birthday but as long as I keep losing at a healthy pace and continue to make lifestyle changes, that is all that matters.

On the family side of things... Jonathan said dada yesterday, it was the most precious sound. Each child when they learn how to say your name, just makes you feel so awesome! He is close to crawling too.... hopefully within the next month he will get all the coordination down.

Well i'll catch up with ya'll later!!!!

Ok warning about tomorrow....

I may decide to not weigh in....... well because.... you see...... I went to my mother-in-laws today.... and there was sooooo much great food.... and I didn't want to be rude.... and not eat all the wonderful things that they had prepared.... so I ate.... and ate..... and ate some more..... :-(

But that's ok tomorrow is a new day. I am trying to remember that my body is the temple of Christ and he does care if I take care of it or not. I can't serve him as good if I am tired all the time, or don't feel as good as I could if I were healthier and taking care of myself. I need to eat to live, not live to eat. So while I am going to be studying and trying to continue to grow in my heart relationship with Christ, I need to take care of my physical self as well.

So I may not weigh in tomorrow, but after a good week of exercising and eating right I will, and hopefully I will get to see my little weight tracker go down a little bit. :-)

Thanks for all the encouragement from those on facebook who read this blog and comment there (those of you who read my blog and aren't on facebook you can leave a comment here if you want)

Count your blessings.........

Today in Sunday school we went around the class and each said something that God had shown or spoke to us this week. My husband and I both had the same answer, God speaks to us daily through our children.




At night when we do our bedtime routine, it's so comforting that the first words out of my 3 year old and 5 year old's mouths are "we have to do our bible time, verses and songs". Each night we do a bible time with them, they each practice some verses and then i sing Jesus Loves Me and Jesus Loves the Little children. I'm saddened it took me almost 5 years to get into a routine like this. Mike and I used to do it some nights, and then others we were too tired, or didn't feel like it. Until Recently we just hadn't made it a priority, and we missed out on so many blessings that come from your children learning about God.



Now don't get the wrong idea... we are NOT perfect at this. Our bedtime routine helps us each night evaluate our day. When we look into our children's eyes and teach them scripture and character lessons, we have to take a hard look at ourselves and how we acted throughout our day. Teaching our children helps us to take a look and make sure that we are acting and serving as we should ourselves.




My children are incredible, and another way that God blesses me is that through them he helps me to go back to the basics. Read your bible..... pray.... praise him... and memorize scripture.

Our children are not only blessings to us, but to God as well, and you know what the greatest part is. We are HIS children!!! He sees us like we see our kids. When we read his word, pray to him, praise him, and memorize his word he feels like I do each night. He LOVES us as a father...... WOW! I look at pictures of Jesus, and it just amazes me. Jesus was God's son, and we see God's love for him, and in turn Jesus's love for children and for us.



When I count my blessings.... after my relationship with Christ, my incredible husband, come my beautiful children..... who have taught me soooo much about my heavenly father and my relationship with him!

Accountability.....

Well for those of you who view my blog you see something at the top that's new. A while back on my best friend/weight loss accountability partners blog I saw one of these weight loss tickers and i thought it is a great way to be accountable. I have to post each monday (our weigh in day) what my weight is. So far I have lost 8.8 pounds, but i have a long way to go. Please keep me in your prayers as I continue to try and make healthier choices, excercise and live a healthier lifestyle all together.

I also read that since I am nursing, I should aim for 1lb of weight loss per week, so my progress might be slow, but as long as I am losing that's all that matters!

Thanks!!!

Can't wait to post a before and after picture in a few months!!!

Date with mommy

Mike and I try to go on "dates" with our children as often as we can. You just can't beat that one on one time with each child. Yesterday I went on a date with Joseph, not extravagent, but just alone time. We went to walmart and he showed me a lot of toys that he liked and thought were pretty cool, then we went to a flea market and another store, and just hung out with each other. We talked, we laughed.... it was just really special. When I got home I told Samuel that today would be his date with mommy. He was so excited today when we went to McDonalds for an ice cream, we also went to walmart (gotta love the toy aisles!) and later headed to the park for some fun time swinging and playing on the playground equipment. He even talked me into going down the slide with him... it was sooo much fun! Later in the evening Jonathan and I went for a mini-date, just he and I went to walmart(yes 3 times in 2 days!!!!) to get some grocery items that we were needing. This just goes to show you that alone time with your kids doesn't have to cost a lot of money. All they need is some time with just you, to share their thoughts, their feelings and get your undivided attention. I am looking forward to my next date with one of my boys! In fact I still need to go on a date with Michael... hopefully he and I will be able to do that very soon!

"your face looks pretty mommy"

I have to say, that I know I talk alot about having boys, and well... it just keeps getting better. Joseph, my 5 year old has learned a new way to make mommy smile. Sometimes I am not feeling so great about myself... maybe I haven't gotten to shower yet... and my hair is back in a pony tail, there are days... when I am frustrated at me not losing weight as fast as I want too... and although I do not express them to my children... they must sense mommy needs a little pick-me-up. Many days I will turn around to find Joseph standing there saying "mommy... your hair looks pretty... and your face looks pretty... and your pants look pretty... and your shirt looks pretty..." It's just so sincere and so sweet!!! My son samuel, the 3 year old has learned from his big brother and now I turn around on many days to find Samuel saying the same things to me....and of course Jonathan.... when I come into his room to wake him up and I say ever so softly his name.. "jonathan" he immediately has a huge smile come across his face.... sometimes when daddy is holding him and he hears my voice he turns and looks at me and grins from ear to ear.... he knows I am his mommmy... and that is such an incredible feeling..... I am so blessed!!!





I also love things they say at these ages.... the things they come up with.... joseph's new one is to say "that freaks me out!!" and samuel "i just needed some time by myself!" Children are a blessing... yes sometimes i want to pull my hair out, during those times I learn to lean on my Heavenly Father and he gives me wisdom and patience and understanding. Then these sweet and funny times are what makes me look up to the heavens and say "WOW... thank you for letting me have the chance to be the best thing on earth.... a mommy!"

The He Hormone (Testosterone)

Mike and I read another chapter in Bringing Up Boys last night and it was all about the He Hormone!! We learned alot, but the biggest thing is that years of feminism and what they have done to change how we try and raise boys today. Even in my mind, ideas have come like "make your boys play with dolls, don't givve them just trucks, don't let them pretend to shoot anything, even through what I have seen on T.V. as a child growing up and even now and other media things have shown, we are supposed to teach our boys to NOT be tough, or act tough, we are supposed to make them more like us... more sensitive, more girly..... instead of celebrating what makes them boys!! God gave them that hormone for a distinct reason and we should celebrate it and enjoy it....

Here's a paragraph that really stood out to me......

Pg 28 "That brings us back to our understanding of boys. Remember that they are men-in-training. Their aggressive nature is designed for a purpose. It prepares them for the "provision and protection" roles to come. That assertiveness also builds culture when properly channeled. I urge you as parents not to resent or try to eliminate the aggressive and excitable nature that can be so irritating. That temperament is part of a divine plan. Celebrate it. Enjoy it. Thank God for it. But also understand that it needs to be shaped, molded, and "civilized." That's where we're heading in the chapters to come. "

For you moms out there who have boys, i urge you to let your boys be boys!!! Read this book.... Bringing up Boys by James Dobson. We need our boys to know how to be boys... and so someday they can be MEN!!

On a side note- letting boys be boys does not mean we let them act like apes, I still teach my boys respect, consideration and sensitivity, but on the other side, I let them be boys... I don't expect them to sit still for hours on end (testosterone makes this more difficult for boys) I don't compare them with the little girls that I know and try to get them to do what the girls do.... that's not fair to them and how God made them.... like James Dobson said.... that temperament needs to be shaped and molded, not stopped. My prayer is that my husband and I can do this efficiently.... we'll see in about 20 years! :-) When you think of our family, say a prayer for us!

"A Mom after God's own heart"

God has really been working on me lately. A few years ago I went through a study at church by Elizabeth George called "A Mom after God's own Heart" but i was going through a rough time and unfortunately didn't run towards God and really concentrate on the study, but instead ran away from him and didn't get much out of it. Then about 6 months after that I went through "A woman after God's own heart" with a lady from my church and I got more out of that. Lately I have been realizing that when I do quiet times I am doing it "just to get by" but not to really learn or change my life. I have been really convicted about my walk with God and if I am teaching my children at 100% to follow God themselves. I comforted myself in the things my husband and I are doing right. We do a bible time at dinner and another one before bed. My 5 and 3 year old are memorizing verses, joseph knows 4 and samuel is learning 2. We teach them to pray and turn to God in all situations. So i sit back sometimes and think "i'm doing ok....i'm doing better than some other moms I know". But God doesn't want us to just do enough to get by, he wants us to give him all of ourselves.


So along with me setting limits on our technology, I am re-doing the study A Mom after God's Own Heart. It was so refreshing today during my kids rest time (sam and jonathan nap, and joseph spends some time watching t.v or playing in his room) I sat down and read my daily devotional in my Women's devotional bible, then I read the first chapter in the book, and did part of the study guide for that chapter. It talked about mothers in the bible, and how their heart and what's most important to the mom will show through her actions and her children will pick up on it.

I need to make sure my walk with God is growing and thriving, so that I can really teach my kids how to have a walk that is growing and thriving.

Some key points I got out of the chapter today are:

"The role of godly parents is to make sure the hearts and minds of their children are saturated with the Word of God" pg 21

" From a godly home life and upbringing, a child can learn how to live a godly life in a sinful world." pg 18

" God works through faithful parents who, in spite of dark and difficult days, walk obediently with him." pg 17

And for my friends who are moms and going through rough times in their homes listen to this great message from the book, in reference to a story about Timothy.

"Do you need encouragement? Take these words to heart-" "Despite division within the home, Timothy's mother instilled in him a character of faithfulness that carried into adulthood... Don't hide your light at home. Our families are fertile fields for receiving gospel seeds. It is the most difficult land to work, but it yields the greatest harvests. Let your children ... know of your faith in Jesus."



One final note, she gives 5 things that you should do to start becoming a mom after God's own heart.... some of them i was already working on but some of them I needed to focus on. The stuff in paranthesees is from the book, then I paraphrase what it is we should do.

1. "Develop a template for your weeks"- what do you want to accomplish- are there bible times for you and your kids every day.

2. "Analyze your TV time"- not only limit how much TV your kids are watching but you yourself too.

3. "Choose a devotional book"- Get into the word and start feeding your spirit so you can feed your kids spiritual food.

4. "Memorize one verse"- We as moms needs to be memorizing scriptures right along with our kids.

5. "Pray for your heart"- Out of the heart, the mouth speaks. We need to give our hearts to God each and every morning.

My challenge is for the mom's out there and to myself- Make sure that you are getting spiritually fed so that we can truly make sure our children get good spiritual food. This is an area I have been weak in. I was making sure my kids did their quiet time, but didn't always make sure that I did mine. They need to see my love for Jesus, so that they will know how to love him and serve him as well.

Well that's all for now.... keep me in your prayers... as I try to grow closer in my walk with God...

Transitioning to a less technological life.... well.. sort of

My last blog was about how I feel that too much technology is stealing my time away, and so I wanted to tell you all how things are starting to change. It is a little bit harder than I thought, but so far so good. I am watching more how much my children are playing the wii, watching T.V. and on the computer. I am only on facebook about two or three times a day and just for about 15 minutes or so. It is difficult though when you take a step back and look at how much the T.V. and computer and video games can overwhelm your life.

One of my best friends chose to delete her facebook all together, and I am proud of her, she did what she needed to do. If my decrease in technology doesn't prove to be enough, I might do a "no screens" day, or a part of the day that is "no screens".

The hardest days are the ones where I am tired, or overwhelmed and it's so easy to turn on the T.V. or the computer or the WII.... but I have realized that these changes don't always happen overnight. Sometimes they are a day by day lesson. You learn each day to make a choice to seek God instead of facebook. To spend more time with your kids then having them watch T.V. for that hour. To enjoy being a family playing a game, or just spending time with each other instead of all facing the T.V. So even though I am not where I want to be today, I have faith that we will get there. It just takes making the touch decisions each day, and then seeing what a blessing it is when we make those small changes.

I'll keep you all updated!!!

What kind of home do I want????

Do i want a home like the duggars??



A home where the TV is never on, the computer is used rarely. A home where devotions are done as a family every day, and time with each other supercedes any other activity that they could be doing.



Do I want a home like some of my friends???

I've been thinking a lot lately about what kind of home I want to have. Not what kind of house I want, but what kind of home. I was watching the Duggars last night and I admire so much about them and most of all the parents. I saw their kids wrestling in the foyer, throwing a ball around, being normal kids. I also saw how they respected each other, helped out with chores, and one HUGE thing i noticed... they didn't spend time watching T.V., or playing computer games. Not that those things are all bad, but i'm wondering if families nowdays spend too much time enjoying technology instead of each other.




I've noticed a lot of days that I am sitting and logging onto facebook, but I haven't yet opened my bible up and done my quiet time. I find myself looking forward to playing a new computer game, but I haven't sat down and played with my kids yet that day. It's not just me, I know several people that are like this, and it just kind of got to me last night. Somewhere along the road of facebook, computer games, and 24/7 noggin channel, I've lost sight of why I am a stay at home mom. When i worked in a pre-school, those children didn't watch T.V. all day. They were playing, doing activities, etc... here I am a stay at home mom..... and I think sometimes I am dropping the ball. I only have so many years with my kids before they go to school. I've allowed technology to creep in and steal my time away. I'm going to go on a minor fast. I'm going to limit incredibly my time on the computer and my kids time watching T.V. and playing video games. I am going to increase play time and reading time with my kids. Try to regain some of the time that I have lost......




I'm not saying that letting your kids watch T.V is bad, or playing on the computer... etc... but for me .... I am just convicted that I am wasting these precious years on Farm Frenzy, the Wii and Noggin..... so as I am figuring out reasonable time limits, activities etc, I will keep you posted. And if there are parents out there who have any insight and advice, please pass it along my way!!!

Boys will be Boys.....

My husband and I decided to read through James Dobson's book called "Bringing Up Boys" together as our evening devotion together. Last night one particular paragraph stood out to me. I always knew that boys were rambuctious, and as Joseph was a toddler and doing things like jumping off the coffee table or climbing up whatever he could get his hands on I was thinking this was normal boy behavior. Some people told me otherwise.... and although I did discipline him and try to keep him for doing things that hurt himself, it just seemed in his nature to do these things. My son samuel at the age of 2 and 1/2 decided to color the living room (see earlier blogs!) Sometimes i wonder when my boys are bouncing off the walls, if this is normal.....Well check this out....

Pg 4 (excerpt from book)

" one of the scariest aspects of raising boys is their tendency to risk life and limb for no good reason. It begins very early. If a toddler can climb on it, he will jump off it. He careens out of control toward tables, tubs, pools, steps, trees and streets. He will eat anything but food and loves to play in the toilet. He makes "guns" out of cucumbers or toothbrushes and likes digging around in drawers, pill bottles, and mom's purse. And just hope he doesn't get his grubby little hands on a tube of lipstick. A boy harasses grumpy dogs and picks up kitties by their ears. His mom has to watch him every minute to keep him from killing himself. He loves to throw rocks, play with fire, and shatter glass. He also gets great pleasure out of irritating his brothers and sisters, his mother, his teachers, and other children... As he gets older, he is drawn to everything dangerous-skateboards, rock climbing, hang gliding, motorcycles and mountain bikes. At about sixteen he and his buddies begin driving around town like kamikaze pilots on sake. It's a wonder any of them survive. Not every boy is like this of course, but the majority of them are."

So far what I gather from the rest of the chapter is Boys WILL be Boys and that my job is to help them turn their God given energy, and risk taking and fearlessness and help them to use it for God. I can't stop them from being boys and i wouldn't want too... I am here to guide, instruct, and love. So if my house looks like a tornado hit it, if they come home and i can't make out who they are because of the dirt... if i have to keep telling them on the playground to quit trying to jump off the highest point of the jungle gym.... i'll be ok. I understand there are boys out there completley opposite of this, but it does make me feel good that when my boys have their moments of craziness, I know that for generations boys have been like this, and that we will all be ok. Looking forward to seeing what adventures are coming up!!! And as we are reading this book.... I will continue to share with you the things I am learning....

A day in the life of a mom with 4 boys!

We were having some friends over today, and the boys room look like a tornado had hit it, so I decided to pick up before church this morning. The boys and mike had left because I also needed to nurse Jonathan and so I figured I would just drive us in a little bit. I was picking up things and looked down into one of the boys jeeps. Well there were some toys in there and a little pretend frog. I was thinking "man that looks like a real frog... and I don't remember seeing a toy like that before". We had my nephews over the night before so I thought they had left a toy over and so I decided to pick it up so I could return it. I touched it and then made the very startling discovery it was a REAL baby frog!!!!! I screamed several times very loudly, hyperventilated a little bit.... my heart was racing and then I decided that i needed to pull it together. I went and got an empty bin, and scooped him up and took him outside. I know this is the first of many surprises (as i'm told by other moms of boys), but I am hoping it never gets worse than this!!!

The simple things...

As summer is coming to an end we decided to do a family day with the older boys. I took jonathan to my moms and me, mike, michael, joseph and samuel all went to the pool. I always tell my children that sometimes when things don't go your way, their is a reason. Sometimes God just has better things in mind, so however minor this may be, to me yesterday it was an example to my children, something I have been trying to teach them.

We had planned on going to the pool in Washington, there is a great kiddy area, with lots of toys, a lazy river and 2 water slides, one for smaller children and one large one. As we approached the pool, got out of the van and was just getting ready to put on the sunscreen I spotted a family coming out and I just said "is the water cold?" and the little boy said "at first.... and they have the kiddy area closed". I was so upset, the whole reason for the venture that day was to show michael that area and the boys were so excited to play in it. I remember someone saying the union pool was cool, so i called them and found out they were open until 6. We all headed over and wow what an AWESOME time we had.

There was something for everyone. I even got to go down waterslides with michael and i haven't done that since i was 15! The best part is we only spent 10.00 for 5 of us to go swimming. We had sooo much fun and then we walked across the street and I had packed us a picnic dinner and we ate and then played at the park. It was so neat to just watch my children being children. Of course the boys were getting dirty and jumping off stuff but that's ok... i've accepted being a mom to 4 boys means lots of dirty clothes and although I haven't had my first trip to the ER due to an injury I'm sure it's not far away. I got to see Michael spending time with Joseph and the smiles beaming on their faces... it was just a GREAT day. On the way home as i was driving and everyone was asleep... i just felt so at peace. God has given me an incredible family and through that day showed me how the simple things can bring so much joy into a persons life. I'm kinda sad summer is coming to a close, but I am going to make sure I treasure the small things and thank God for them too.

AMAZED!!!

Ok I was always taught that you thank God for everything, pray for everything, even the small things, he cares about it all. Well today two miracles (in my opinion) happened. One major, the other minor however major to my 5 year old.

Last night I went to walmart and I always just carry my billfold in instead of a purse, well today I got the kids loaded in the van to go and get some gas and mail a letter when I noticed my billfold was not in the van. A frantic search began, the van, the house, the van again, the house again. I decided to call wal-mart and they said they did not have a billfold in my name. I called my husband who prayed for me about it. I ran home one more time to check at home, and as i walked in i saw the phone light up so i ran over and answered. It was First Bank telling me someone from wal-mart had called them to tell me my billfold was there!!!! I thanked them about a hundered times.... ok maybe two or three and ran to the van to tell my kids that I knew where it was. I said "thank you God" about a million times... Joseph and Samuel asked why i was saying that and I got to tell them about how awesome God is and how he protected my billfold from being stolen and that he should be thanked for it. Got to walmart and they said a cart guy had found it, so thankfully it had been in no one else's hands!!

Then joseph was looking for one of his cars named Boost (from the cars movie) we looked all over for it and couldn't find it and he said "mommy maybe we should pray about it" so we did.... about an hour later a thought popped into my head to check under my bed... guess what.. there it was!!! That may seem like a minor thing, but to me it was just more evidence of what a great Father in Heaven we have and how he shows me not only in the big things, but in the small things too that he loves us so very much!! Joseph thanked God too for helping me find Boost!!

An addition

You know although my stepson Michael isn't my biological child, I have known him since he was 3 and 1/2 (2001) and have watched him grow into a handsome loving young man.I love him as one of my own children, and it's amazing how much he has grown and how God has blessed my life through him in many ways. Here are some photos of he and I throughout the years....