My Life today~

Mal has a summer cold and so last night we spent two hours of saline drops, snot sucker and the lovely breathing machine. All in the middle of the night & in the middle of a six day NO daddy shift. After several cups of coffee this AM I woke up and welcomed the day.

During the boys quiet time I made a new list of movies to see. It's for my netflix queue. We have the plan for two out at a time. But what I love best is the instant viewing feature. There's lots choose from. And we don't have to wait for them to come. Most of it is older stuff but I usually can find something to watch when we have the time.

The boys played in mud today. It has rained here everyday for four or five days in a row. Justus LOVED it, Zeke not so much. I will be glad when we have a bathroom of our own so the boys can go straight there instead of washing off to go upstairs to get a bath.

I got an idea for a kids book today. It may never become anything more than a thought but you never know. Silly as it is the thought of the idea of a book made me smile.

The day is winding down and we're watching G-force...on netflix. :-)

Mother's Day~

For Mother's Day I slept late (9:30ish!) And then got up and did nothing. Sam and my Dad grilled and made lunch. YUMMY grilled chicken, scalloped potatoes, salad. And the boys favorite- Doritos. For dessert our neighbors had brought over Krispy Kreme doughnuts! And my dad bought a cheesecake! And my sister brought a cookie cake. Too many choices.

Then after lunch we rolled out to go and watch Carson's (high school) production of "Footloose". Mom and I are both musical lovers and had a great time watching the kids sing and dance. The "acting" not so much. But overall a very enjoyable way to spend the afternoon.

Sam bought me a Hershey's syrup hand poured candle. And a cute coffee mug. Chocolate colored...it says: Coffee makes it possible to get out of bed. CHOCOLATE makes it worthwhile. Cute huh? That is if you like coffee.

Interesting side note: I didn't drink coffee until having my 3rd child. Still like iced coffee best but usually have a cup or two hot in the AM. Especially if Sam is at work.

The new do~ before & after

On my mind~

While watching a episode of "Law and Order", I saw a lady putting on a bra with just one hook. Call me stupid but I was almost jealous. While most people pay to get bigger boobs I'd be happy to have mine smaller.

Shopping today I saw two ladies with cancer. For a split second I started to panic a bit. My grandmother has had breast cancer twice now. So many women deal with this horrible cancer and it seems that there are new kinds of cancer showing up almost daily. I HATE cancer.

It's our tenth year anniversary this year -in September. I'd love to come up with some great surprise.


I finally had Sam cut Malachi's hair. I really miss my curly headed kiddo. His hair is so blond he looks bald. We'll be using lots of sunscreen on that noggin!

In a little more than a month we will be on vacation! Justus will be out of school. Zeke will turn 4. And I will still be wishing I had my license. I don't know why but my mind cannot get over the terror at the thought of driving. It's so dumb but I just haven't been able to get past it.

Moving on....we're getting a bathroom!!!!! OK. In all honesty I'm not holding my breath at the moment BUT we've started moving things around in our basement "apartment" and are making plans on where things will go. And the anticipation may just kill me. Or not.

Last but not least, sir Zeke has decided to attempt potty training. It's totally different from how it happened with Justus. One week and we were done. With Z it's gonna be on his terms and at his pace. Nevertheless...I am thankful!

ps Why is thankful spelt with only one L & not two like all the other llll words. For example fell, full, well, etc. I'm assuming that English 101 would be good for me right about now.

Scary stuff!

US low score on world motherhood rankings: charity

The United States has scored poorly on a campaign group's list of the best countries in which to be a mother, managing only 28th place, and bettered by many smaller and poorer countries.

"A woman in the Unites States is more than five times as likely as a woman in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece or Italy to die from pregnancy-related causes in her lifetime and her risk of maternal death is nearly 10-fold that of a woman in Ireland," the report said.

"At this rate, a child in the US is more than twice as likely as a child in Finland, Iceland, Sweden or Singapore to die before his or her fifth birthday," the report noted.

And it added: "The United States has the least generous maternity leave policy -- both in terms of duration and percent of wages paid -- of any wealthy nation."

Um it really stinks that a xxl doesn't fit anymore. Being a 3x is SO discouraging. Had to get out a little complaint. Think it would help to sew my mouth shut???

Angel~

Today we visited with Angel at the hospital in Charlotte. Justus was right at home & he and Zeke sat right down and played with Angel for a little while. Myra told me about everything that's been going on since they found the tumor.

As far as they can tell the doctors were able to get most of the tumor. They think that it is/was a slow growing tumor but there may more surgeries and/or needed to get everything. Because of the surgery a lot of Angel's senses were affected. Specifically the coordination & balance part.

She has three different kinds of therapy: recreational, occupational and physical. They keep her pretty busy. Right now she is using a wheel chair to get around most of the time but she is very determined to get out of it soon. While we were there she unbuckled herself twice and started trying to walk on her own. Also affected is her eyesight.


The docs say it will be at least another 2 weeks before she is ready to go home. And be able to stay alone without health care supervision. But they are seeing progress every day & it's really amazing! Please keep Angel in your prayers!

Urgent Prayer Request~

Please pray for Angel. She is a little girl in Justus' kindergarten class. They found a tumor in her brain and she is scheduled for surgery this week. Angel is a sweet girl who has already overcome many obstacles. And I can't imagine what her parents are going through. I don't know her dad's name but her momma's name is Myra. She and I work together to do the class parties. She is a great mom and I'm sure her heart is breaking right now.

Mal gave me the sweetest hug just a few minutes ago when he woke up from his nap. I LOVE it! He's can be quite grumpy so I especially enjoy the love when he's in the mood! He's starting to "talk" a little. He says his version of "Hey" and "Hey there". Too cute.

Something new~

We visited a church on Saturday night. I loved the fact that it was at night. The service was short, sweet and to the point. Loved that too. I hope we will go back again. Since we left our previous church we've only done home church. That has many benefits but I still miss the fact of getting out of the house and into some fellowship in a place specifically dedicated to God. Does that make any sense at all? Our homes should be dedicated to God as well. But many times (for me) it becomes my hide out for complacency. "Going" to church is also a form of accountability for me. At home it's easy to plan on doing it later and then never getting around to it.

I also practiced driving a little yesterday. A big step for me since I'm terrified to do it. When I got home I was shaking like a leaf. But not headed towards a panic attack as usual so it's a small step forward.

Me

Sometimes I feel so lost. This season of my life is so discouraging. So confusing. To call it a valley would be an understatement. And yet there is so much to be thankful for. My thoughts go back and forth between so many emotions I feel like I could loose my mind at any moment. Let me say I am so grateful for HOPE and a little thing called FAITH. When I get really quiet there is a still small voice reminding me of whom I belong to. Of who I really am. And that is enough to hold onto.

Justus's quote for the week~

"Uuum. I smell a bubble machine." He comes up with some crazy stuff. I guess he liked the smell & somehow has connected it with the smell of bubbles. Anyways what he was smelling was the "linen" disinfectant spray I was putting on the door handles to attempt to keep us healthy.

A few thoughts~

Do your newspapers do Valentine's ads??? Ours had TONS this year. I've never seen them before probably because we don't normally get the paper. But my parents ordered pizza and a free paper came with it. I think its a great gesture if your loved one reads every day. If Sam were to ever put one in for me I'd never see it though.

Today I'm watching the Amazing Race that I dvr'd and am so pleasantly surprised that one of the couples is Jeff and Jordan from last seasons Big Brother. I love BB and Jeff and Jordan were one of my FAVS last summer! I hope they do well.

Speaking of DVR's; ours is a pain in the butt these days. We changed our box over to an HD and it's been nothing but trouble. Anyone else have problems with their dvr box?

We celebrated Justus's sixth birthday this weekend. He was hilarious when we sang Happy Birthday he ducked his head and pretended to be shy. He was blushing just a bit. So cute! His actual bday was yesterday so we took cupcakes to school & celebrated with his classmates. Then we checked him out of school and went to play at Chucky Cheese for a few hours. It's really hard being separated from my boy. I'd love to home school if I had the confidence that I'd do him justice.

Mal's birthday is just around the corner. He's growing so super fast!!! We're working on eating more table foods because at the end of the month formula supply dries up. There are 8 teeth in that monster mouth and several more coming through. He's walking quiet well now. And trying to run when he knows I'm after him.

Mr. Zeke-----all boy. Messy and sneaky!!!! He is refusing to potty train! He'll be four in July and it's making me crazy. We all know that every child is different but geez louise! Potty train already!!!!

We're waiting on our tax rebate! THANK YOU JESUS we're getting some back. Our van has the kiss of death so we're gonna drive it till she dies. And be looking for a new one in the meantime. New to us that is.

I have this stubborn wart on my finger. I've tried the liquid remover and the "freeze therapy". It's not coming off. Any suggestions?

Oh me oh my~

Justus's goes to a Christian school this year and they have decided to add 6th grade this year. However they don't want to expand their facilities. While I can appreciate them staying with small classes they have created a panic in the way they have worded next years policies.

So by adding one class but not expanding the entire school has to be rearranged. And now there will only be one class of each grade. Parents were all in a panic this morning when the re-enrollment applications were available. Sam said they were fighting over the applications---seriously???

I mean I love him being at a Christian school. They allow us to do "family" trips in the middle of the year. And it's been an awesome experience for Justus so far but I'm not in LOVE with the school. Truthfully if I thought he'd enjoy it I'd much rather him stay here with me and homeschool.

Well anyways, the parents were staying right there to fill out the application. Sam couldn't get to the sign in sheet because the moms were all sitting at the table. It's not the only private Christian school in town. Geez people get a grip! Yes it would be disappointing for Justus to miss out being there next year but not the end of the world!

Handmade by Nana~

My mom made these beautiful stockings for Justus' teacher and her husband. I've got to learn how to do this. Can't remember if they are crocheted or knit. She tried to teach me when I was younger but I am left handed and was too impatient at the time. Now I do wish I already knew how!

Christmas goodies~

I made these for the teachers as Justus' school. German Chocolate cake and chocolate covered pretzels. We made the oreo balls the Crystal showed us---thanks bunches Crystal! And some other cookies that I placed on the tray at the bottom. I LOVE baking. Even though I'm not that great at it.

Mr. Mal

HELP, my ten month old is taking 3-4 steps at a time! And climbing up the steps as demonstrated in the pics. I'm so NOT ready for this!!!! He is still very unsteady and unsure of himself but that doesn't stop him from stopping and attempting. He also discovered how to get through the barrier of plastic tubs that keep him safe from our woodstove. Thankfully he is still pretty slow.

OH Zeke!

So the past couple days "Sneaky Zeke" has decided he is interested in going potty. I guess it's the first steps to potty training. Including our last trip to Walmart where we had to make an emergency stop at the bathrooms to pee---exactly two drops.

Today he upped the ante so to speak when instead of peeing in the potty he decided to stand on the very top step and pee there. Leaving the pee to drip down onto the freshly mopped floor and onto the baby's Johnny jumper thingy. It was a laugh or beat your child silly moment.

I chose laughter this time but quickly explained that I wouldn't tolerate that kind of nastiness again. Sam had to walk away. Now we will have a clean johnny jumper and again clean floor---however long that lasts!

Grumpy Old Troll

Mal has been torturing me to I decided that I'd return the favor & pull up his hair in the girly fashion. Justus said-"that's gross mom....a boy girl. Take it out." Yeah got a good laugh from that.