God's grace

                         

Today, September 30, 2014, 

I'm so thankful that God does not allow us to all be discouraged on the same days! While yesterday was an incredibly rough day for me, today was much, much better. We were on time for Travis's school, and we are on lesson 40 with the other boys...yay! 

My dad was able to listen to the boys reading so that really helps move the schooling day along. While Wyatt seems to be feeling much better, Chandler hasn't been feeling so great today. He found blankets in the "mother's room" at the church building, and he wrapped himself up in the blankets. He was running a fever shortly after we arrived at school, so I ended up taking him home early with Wyatt, Emma, and Travis. After we picked up Travis, we headed home. I know Chandler isn't feeling well when he is asking to take a nap! Since Garett was still having school with Nana, I laid the other boys down for rest time about 11:30. Travis staunchly declared that he wasn't tired, but he was asleep within ten minutes. :) It was nice and quiet in the house for over an hour, and I even got to lay down for a few minutes. (I've not been feeling 100% either, but I simply cannot be sick!) Thankfully, Garett was very quiet when he was dropped off after school, so everyone was able to have a little quiet time. 

Some very dear friends came by about 1:30. Anna and Elizabeth Mayo, from my dad's church family, came over for the afternoon and evening. We were able to get so much done! Both bathrooms are clean, the laundry is done, the beds have clean bedding, the boys have haircuts and baths, floors are swept and cleaned, the summer clothes are put away, and Emma's next set of clothes are in her drawers! Whew! We also spent hours looking for that ridiculous key to the car! Drawers have been emptied, furniture moved, bags and shoes searched through, and even the trash; however, the key is still missing! This is super frustrating for me, but I'm positive that God still knows where it is hiding! :) I had a great time visiting and working with the girls, and the house looks so nice and clean. (Now to keep it that way until Roger comes home!) 

Today Roger is discouraged. It's disheartening to not have this instrument training done, and in know he feels like he is letting our family down. However, out of the fifteen students that were in his class, none of them are done either! It is discouraging to see how far we have yet to go, and it's easy to let the devil talk you into second guessing yourself. I know Roger is feeling down, but nothing lasts for forever...we will get through this too, Lord willing. Roger moved out of the room he was renting, because he expected to be done by now. Today was the date that he had given the landlady that he would be moved out by. However, it means that Roger is currently homeless in Florida. Thankfully, he's coming home in two more sleeps for the weekend. When he returns to Florida on Monday, he should have a place to stay. A man in the church that Roger is attending has said that he will have a place for Roger to stay on Monday. So I am praying that it will all work out! 

                                          

October 1, 2014

I should just dub Wednesdays as "wacky Wednesday". It always seems to be a little on the crazy side...maybe because I try to squeeze too much into the day?!

We made it too school on time; however, I forgot that Wyatt was supposed to have a speech lesson at 8:30. Well, we missed it! I remembered about 8:45, so I called his speech teacher, who graciously understood all about schedules and small children! 

I took the little ones home about 11, while my mom finished up with the older boys. Emma fell asleep on the way home, which usually isn't a problem. But today she decided that she didn't want to take a nap when we got home. :( So, I fixed lunch, clipped coupons, worked on a grocery list, (which I forgot at home), and tried to think of new places to look for those car keys!

We left for Oshkosh about 1:30, and we went to the YMCA first. It was nice to get a work out in for this week, and to know that the kids were supervised. Wyatt has been having an especially rough time lately. He seems to be moody, aggressive, and very emotional. He announced to me today that he was tired of me, and he wanted dad back. I probably didn't respond with the most grace and tact; but I told him that we were stuck with each other and that I was getting tired of him too to be quite honest! I think he needs some time to go on a daddy date, so we will have to work that into our schedule. 

After the YMCA, I took the kids to a friends house to play. Gretchen offered to watch the kids this afternoon, so I could do errands. I haven't gone back to plasma since I got that staph infection. It's looking much better, but I think it needs a few more days to heal. I had several places I wanted to go, but I decided that I should get the oil changed in the truck. Gretchen had a coupon, and the oil change place could fit me in right away. Travis became a leech at Gretchen's house, so he came along. Thankfully, the oil change place offered cookies and soda, so he was quite content on his outing with mom. :) The oil change took longer than I wanted it to, so by the time we were done, I didn't have very much time to run errands. We picked up a few items at Target, and then headed back to Gretchen's house. Gretchen graciously invited us all for dinner, so we ate dinner before heading off for church. 

When we arrived at church, I realized that the boys had forgotten the bag with the. Kings Kids shirts, books, and Bibles. I was a little upset that they hadn't remembered, but hopefully next time one of them will remember! 

We are so looking forward to Roger coming home for a few days! Each time he comes and goes, it gets a little harder. He did look into a job today...in Florida! It's not in my plan to move there, but each day we are apart as a family, it makes it easier to not be picky!

October 2-4, 2014

When Roger come home, life gets a little crazier, a lot more fun, and the days go by much faster! So, while I have more to write about when he's home, I have less time. 

I took Emma and Wyatt along to the airport today to pick up daddy. Wyatt has been aggressive, emotional, and challenging to deal with lately. One of Roger's brothers was supposed to pick him up today, but he backed out of the job. Then my dad was going to pick up Roger, but dad got called to work. So, I worked out the schooling schedule with my mom for the older boys, dropped Travis off at his 4k class;  and Wyatt, Emma, and I drove to Milwaukee. Thankfully, Emma slept on the way down. But by the time we got to the airport, she wanted out; and Wyatt needed to go potty. We parked the car, rode on the moving sidewalk, and we got to take the escalator...Wyatt was thrilled! Roger was waiting for us, but  he thought that we would be driving through the pick up passenger area. I hadn't called him to tell him that I had parked the car. Wyatt spotted Roger way off down the side walk, and he took off like his pants were on fire! I only wish that I had video taped it! It was so refreshing and awesome to watch Wyatt launch himself at his daddy and wrap his arms around his neck. Emma went to Roger immediately, and she has been giving him voluntary, wet, slobbery, kisses non stop! :) 

We stopped for a quick lunch, and then headed back to my parents house to pick up the other boys. As soon as we arrived at my parents, the boys came spilling out of the house to talk, hug, and kiss their daddy. They obviously miss him! Everyone was anxious to go home, so we all went home and enjoyed an evening of fun as a family with lots of talking! Roger spent some time looking for the car key, and asking me about all the places I had already looked. To each question he asked me, I replied, "I already looked there." :) Roger went outside to look in the car again, and under the tire wheels, and I'll admit, I didn't help him look much. After all, I had already torn apart the house and put it back together, and I hadn't found the silly key! However, Roger came back in the house...with the car key! What?! Where did you find it? He said that he had looked under the tire wheels, and as he stood up, he looked across the roof of the car; and the car keys were on the roof of the car! I must have put them up there for safe keeping, and then they were hidden from short people! :) Praise The Lord, the keys have been found! It's just another reason to be glad that Roger is home!! :)

         

Friday was a hard schooling day. It's hard to motivate children who just want to "go with dad". Roger needed to fly in the airplane that he will be flying tomorrow for the Wings as Eagles open house. So he left to go to Oshkosh, while I tried to finish up the school day. We also had a wedding to attend in the afternoon, so time was tight. I laid Emma down for a nap as soon as we got home. I made lunch for the boys (leftover bacon and potatoes) and got ready for the wedding. It was a "no kids" wedding, so my friend, Gretchen came to my rescue for the second time this week. While I was showering, Emma woke up, so the boys fed her lunch. Yeah, they gave her three pieces of bacon and a cupcake! She was happy, but she didn't have the most nutritious lunch! :) oh well! Trying to hurry up small children, is like telling them to pretend to be turtles..."hurry up" just simply isn't in their vocabulary! I ended up meeting Roger in Oshkosh since  flying took a little longer than we planned. We did make it to the wedding on time, and it was a nice date with the two of us! :) 

The originally plan was for us to pick up the kids and take them to my parents before going to the reception. However, when we picked up the kids, it was apparent that they needed daddy. Three of the boys were asking to go home and play with daddy. So Roger stayed at home with the boys, pizza, and a movie, while I went to the reception. To be honest, it was hard for me to go to the reception with out Roger, but I did have a good time. I'm thankful for a husband who recognizes the needs of his children, and doesn't hesitate to do what is best for them. 

Saturday was a crazy day where we left the house at 8:00 am and came home about 7:00 pm! Roger flew the cessa 173 for the Wings as Eagles open house. (Wings as Eagles is a flying ministry out of our church, and it was a special treat for Roger to be able to fly people on a short plane ride) Garett and Chandler had qualified for a special trip from Kings Kids. They had said enough verse cards,and they qualified for a special trip. The trip was a field trip to the hanger...which Garett was thrilled about, and Chandler...not so much. :) Since the boys were going to be spending most of the day at the hanger anyways, I don't think Chandler was thrilled that it was a place that he was already going. However, we had a talk on being thankful and content, and that not everything in life can be exciting and awesome! 

We spent the day at the hanger. It was good to have fellowship with friends, meet some new people, and to be together as a family. The weather was kinda crummy in the morning, but it cleared up in the early afternoon enough to fly. Roger took multiple trips up in the 172, several with people who had never flown before. It was good afternoon, even if it was a little crazy! I was able to get away to Target...by myself...for about an hour. One of our college kids, Lydia, was willing to watch the boys at the hanger. It was so nice to go somewhere ALL by myself!! 

After the open house, I took Chandler and Emma to the grocery store and to run a few errands. After we got done with that we met up with Roger and the other boys for a treat of frozen yogurt (aka. Supper!) By the time we arrived home, the boys were showing signs of fatigue and major grouchiness! It was time to unwind and get ready for bed. 

We had a special treat in our mailbox. It was a gift certificate to Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce businesses for $25.00! Basically, it is a gift certificate that we can use anywhere in Oshkosh. It was completely unexpected surprise, and we have no idea who sent it! The piece of paper simply said, "we have been praying for you." We, Roger and I, were completely surprised, and it was a blessing to our hearts. I'd love to save the gift certificate for a date when this is all over, but knowing how life goes, I'll probably need it for car repairs, gas, or shoes for one of the kids. :) And that's fine, it's a special treat to have a gift certificate...I love those! I'm really quite the "hoarder" when it comes to gift cards. I have been saving all my gift cards that I get from Target for buying certain items. (At Target, they often offer like a $5.00 gift card when you buy certain items like diapers, shampoo, or other such essentials. I then combine these deals with coupons to get the items free or cheap, and then save the gift cards for Christmas shopping.) If I get my free birthday drink gift card for Starbucks, it takes me the whole month to use it...because I want to save it for a day when I'll really enjoy it! So, to whoever made my day...we love it! We are looking forward to using it for something special...and thank you, you were a blessing to us!

It's been wonderful, great, special, and awesome to have Roge home for the weekend. We've enjoyed our time together, treasured our memories, and thankful for God's never ending provision for our family. To all who pray for us, pleas continue to do so! :)

Having "Fun" yet?!

September 29, 2014

To give you all fair warning...this post is full of raw, unfiltered emotion and feelings. I'm writing what I'm thinking and since this is my life journal, I'm comfortable with that. (You can stop reading now if you so wish. After all, this may change your complete and entire opinion of me and my spiritual walk with God.)

Frustration, irritation, confusion, and tears of fatigue are all crowding in my mind. What good reason could there possibly be for the truck breaking down last night on the way home? What good reason is there to have a sick child in the truck? (I'm guessing I need to be thankful here on this one that Wyatt didn't throw up in the car.) What good reason is there for losing the car key, and spending several hours looking only to still not have it found? What good reason is there for this flight training to have taken WEEKS longer than they originally told us it would? What good reason is there to have a replacement key cost $300.00?...oh, because it has a computer chip or something like that in there! What good reason is there for the baby to be up multiple times last night when I didn't even get to bed until after 12 am?

I'm tired of trying to be up beat and positive. I'm tired of trying not to take out my impatience and frustration on the small people around me. I'm tired of waiting for God to do something great, and it's not happening...at least not in my timing! I'm tired of worrying about money, always debating in my mind if I should spend this money on something or not. I'm frustrated with myself for being so incredibly emotional. I'm frustrated with my lack of faith and dependence on God. However, as I write this and listen to Pandora Radio, I can still see God's hand over me. The songs that were playing as tears streamed down my face were "Great is Thy Faithfulness" and "Simply Trusting". How absolutely fitting and a balm for a my weary soul!

                       

UPDATE: later today

It's amazing how getting a nap can refresh my mind, make the world a brighter place, and reestablish my mind to think on things that are honest, true, lovely, good report, virtue, and pure.(Philippians 4:8). My dad came over about 10:30 to pick up the older boys for school. Wyatt didn't  have school since he was still running a fever. Travis missed school since it was such a late bedtime last night. I'm so incredibly thankful for my parents. My mom taught the older boys today, while my dad worked on tracking down a tire for the truck. They brought the boys back around 2, but by then I had turned the house upside down for the key to the car. I've searched through trash, under beds, the refrigerator, the stove, in bags, shoes, washed all the laundry, checked in the washer and dryer, and every other place imaginable! I have no idea where else to look! I'm super thankful that Wyatt, Travis, and Emma all napped at the same time today, so I was able to squeeze in a twenty minute nap also. Shortly after my parents arrived with the boys, my dad had a new tire on the truck...woo hoo! At least I now have a vehicle to drive!

To my great surprise, the florist came by about 2:30, with flowers...and they were for me! :) My husband thoughtfully sent flowers today knowing that my day was rough, and that I was very tired and discouraged. I'm blessed by his love for me, his faithfulness to our marriage, his desire to achieve a better job for our family, and the hard work he puts into raising our children.

I'm thankful for friends. Friends that pray for me, cry with me, encourage me, and lift up my burdens before the Lord. After texting several friends a picture of the truck last night, and knowing my frustration with not being able to find the key to the car, one my friends texted and said, "We love you, and we'll be bringing by supper about 5:45." God knew...in His sovereignty...that I needed some encouragement today, and He provided that through a friend's thoughtfulness. I'm thankful for the sacrifices in time and effort that Autumn and Phil have gifted to our family.

After checking my sorry attitude, and asking God for strength, forgiveness, and His grace, I can again come back to the statement..."I am blessed."

One: No one was hurt last night when the tire shredded itself. And although the spare tire was soft and the rim rusty, the tire did get us home last night. God did not allow my thoughts to run away with me while we were waiting beside the road. (Just that morning, there had been two murders in Berlin, so it would have been easy to let my imagination run away with me!)

Two: My parents didn't even hesitate to come out and rescue me and the children.

Three: The Bruski family stopped and helped get the tire replaced. I really didn't even know where to start looking for the spare tire.

Four: God made it abundantly clear that I needed to pull over the truck. I'm not very mechanically inclined; and since all the gauges looked normal, I needed the smell of rubber and a grinding sound to direct me to pull the truck off the road. God allowed me to pull off the road where there were lights from the granary and at the corner of a fairly busy, lite intersection. If I had pulled off when the truck first  started running "noisy", it would have been in the pitch black, lonely stretch of road. 

Five: God provided an opportunity to cement in my mind how much I need Him. Wyatt told me after church that he wasn't feeling well. He didn't want any of the snack on the way home, so his brothers eagerly ate his share. I'm thankful that my mom brought her car to pick us up, so she took home the kids (except Emma...she was sleeping in the truck) Wyatt threw up as soon as he got home, but he made it to the toilet! It was after 11, by the time the boys were in bed. Emma had a hard time settling down, and I spent almost an hour holding her. However, this provided a chance for mind to unwind, and to thank God that we were safely at home again.

Six: Although this day was full of frustrations and discouragements, I'm still alive and well. Although Wyatt isn't feeling great, he isn't deathly ill or anything terrible.

Seven: Friendships make my life so much more enjoyable. God is so good to provide good friends for me. 

So, all that to say, that in spite of a weary, long day, where I had to battle through my emotions and fatigue, God is still sovereign. He still loves me. He's still providing grace for me. 

Roger is getting very anxious about getting these last few flying hours in for this instrument rating. Please pray that the weather will cooperate. He is moving out of the place he's been living the last few months, so pray for God to provide the right place for him for these last few weeks. 

Many, many thanks for the prayers,

Sarah

                    

Church activities

You know...I'm coming to the place where I'm actually starting to enjoy journaling our daily lives. Sometimes I'm disappointed because there are many, many things I'd like to write about, but my time seems to run away from me! However, I know that I'm not going to regret these days of recording memories and life experiences. 

Today the boys were talking about getting married, which always gives me a chuckle. Chandler has decided that he is not going to get married because he doesn't like all that mushy, sloppy, "stuff". I think he's referring to kissing. Garett, however, has decided that he will get married. His reasoning? He hates shopping, and he says that his wife can do all that stuff. (Good thing they both have several years to mature and grow!)

I slept terrible last night, which always makes for a long day. Emma was also up several times last night, so I had a hard time getting up this morning! We were a few minutes late for school, but that's not terrible considering that no one was out of bed at 7:15 and we have to be leaving by 7:40! The boys had math and phonics tests today, so that did speed up the school time today. By 11:30, we were all home. Emma was already sleeping, so I decided that we would all lay down for rest time. I put the two little boys in our bed, and I gave the bigger boys books to read. I also told them they could play on the Kindle, but they were not to get out of bed or ask me for anything! (I have never let the boys have the Kindle at rest time, but I was in desparate need of a nap!)

The house was quiet for almost two hours! :) We had lunch, picked up a little bit, and then went to a friends house. One of our friends had some children's clothes for me to look through for Emma.  When we left their home, Chandler managed to forget his shoes! (How do you even do that?!) And I didn't even notice! We had a few things to get at the grocery store...milk again! Chandler didn't tell me he left his shoes at our friends house, instead he found a pair he had left in the car from a previous day! 

I had briefly thought about going to the YMCA, but my better side of common sense told me to come home and keep working on things for the ladies meeting. The boys played outside, while I tried to get some things together. However, I feel like as fast as I gather my thoughts, they are flying out the other side of my brain. It's time to make a list, oh wait, I lost the list! 

Since our lawn mower is back, I feel like I should mow the grass so that it's one less thing my dad has to do for us. But when I went to start it, I realized that I have never, ever, driven our lawn mower. Oh well, how hard can it be? Yeah, I could read the instructions, but it's easier to just call Roger! :) We managed to get part of the yard mowed. It will probably take me about eight days to mow it, and then   I'll need to start all over again! :) 

One of the dear families from my dad's church, the Mayo family, brought us a meal tonight. It was delicious, and I ate way too many home made cookies! The boys had a great time playing nerf gun wars with the children...and I found a nerf gun with bullets hiding in my bed tonight! :) 

Rogef wasn't able to fly today due to weather conditions. That makes for a long, boring day for him, so please pray that he can get this flying done...soon!

Friday and Saturday...

Saying that "I'm exhausted" doesn't even come close to expressing how I really feel tonight! My heart is full with all that God did at our ladies meeting. 

Friday was a crazy day with satan trying to discourage me at every turn. I started off my day late, so I didn't get in my daily Bible reading. I proceeded to burn breakfast, ruin my coffee, drop a cup on my foot, and lose the car keys...all before 7:30 in the morning! Since I couldn't find the car keys, I had to switch around the car seats; and I proceeded to make us all late for school! I was flustered and a little irritated. I know that God is sovereign, and I wanted Him to make my day go smoothly! However, I believe that God was testing how I would respond to the situation. School was a little rough, and I kept thinking of all the things I still needed to get done before the ladies meeting at seven pm. We managed to finish school, and we headed home. When I get tired or stressed, I tend to see all the things that I need to get done...like cleaning the garage, sweeping the floor, or looking for car keys. But none of those things are the things I need to be doing to get myself ready for the evening session. I ended up calling Roger to talk my way through the things I needed to get done. Thankfully, he provided a listening ear and some direction for my scattered thoughts. He reminded me that I should be thankful that we have a different vehicle I can drive, and that losing the key to the car is not the end of the world. The garage cleaning can get done another day, and the grass won't mind not getting cut today! I'm thankful that Roger's logic could help me eliminate the unnecessary things that were crowding my thoughts. 

I dropped the kids off at my parents around two, and headed to church to help decorate for the girls session. I was helping with the 8 to 12 year old girls, which is always interesting and fun. :) We decorated, organized, and talked through the Friday night session and the days activities for Saturday. I  have worked with an amazing lady, Amy Sousa, for the last several years, and we always have a great time! We make huge messes, play some crazy games, laugh a lot, and have great Christian ladies to speak to the girls. 

During the Friday night session, my friend, Autumn, gave her testimony. I absolutely love hearing how God can use our mistakes for His honor and glory. Autumn's life is a reflection of how much God loves us and desires a close relationship with us. It was a great testimony for the girls to hear, and I'm sure that God will be glorified through it all. 

By the time I left for home on Friday night, my parents had already brought my kids home. My parents graciously put the boys to bed for me, but Emma refused to go to bed without seeing her mama! (Stinker!) I visited with my parents for a bit, and  I thanked them for their willingness to take the kids for the evening. By the time I went to bed, I was exhausted...but determined to get up early and get my devotions done in the morning! 

I was up about 5:30 this morning, and my feet hit the ground running. I did drink 1/2 of cup of coffee before I set it down and forgot it somewhere! I also got my Bible reading caught up, and finished up a game for the day. Thankfully, my mom came to get Emma, so I didn't have to make a separate trip to my parents house to drop her off. I managed to get all the boys in the truck, and we headed to the Hammonds home. Autumns husband, Phil, was taking the boys for the day! I'm also thankful that they offered to feed the boys breakfast, so it was one less thing on my to do list. 

I dropped the boys off, gave Phil our truck to drive for the day, and Autumn took me to church so I could finish trying to get my act together! :) The day started promptly at nine. We knew that 39 girls had already signed up, but when it was nine am, we had 59 girls downstairs! We quickly realized that we didn't have enough papers, chairs, and folders to go around, so it was an emergency trip to walmart! I also was in a singing group with some dear ladies from our church, so I went to sing. The Lord really helped us all sing together, and it was truly a blessing to sing about Gods Grace...He's been amazingly good to me! 

We had a fun day downstairs with the girls. The craft time was a disaster, but the girls seemed to have a good time! :) It was a huge mess! Gretchen Schillder made lunch for all the girls, and she also made home made carmel for apples, which the girls loved! :) Over all, it was an amazing, exhausting day with some great speakers that challenged the girls to grow in their relationship with God, lots of fun and laughter, and games. I'm hoping that each girl went home knowing that God loves her, and that we love them too.

                         

After the ladies meeting, I helped clean up, went to pick up my boys, and headed home. The boys had a fun day at the EAA air museum, and Garett even got to take a flight. :) They were tired! My mom brought Emma home, and the kids played outside, while I looked for car keys. Yeah, I still haven't found them!  I really missed Roger this afternoon. I really could have used a walk or a short run to decompress and think through the day  but that just didn't happen. But I did get to visit with my mom for a bit, and then the neighbor brought over her two little ones. She needed someone to watch them, while she baled hay. It was a way I could be a blessing to someone today, and the boys were delighted to have little ones to entertain. I was super tired, so we ate a highly nutritious meal of cold cereal for supper tonight. :) Oh well, it's probably not going to hurt them! Shortly after our visitors left, I had the boys get ready for bed. I could tell they were tired from all the whining that was going on while they were brushing teeth and getting ready for bed! 

Tomorrow is a new day. Its a day to worship The Lord and to fellowship with other believers. Roger flew last night, but storms have been throwing off his flying schedule. Please pray that he will be able to get in the hours he needs, before he comes home this weekend. Also, we'd like to see God provide the perfect job for our family, so we'd appreciate your prayers as we are approaching the days of applications. 

Details...I love how God works in my life!

I absolutely love how God is involved in the details of our lives. Although at times it seems as though I'm stumbling through life, I know that God has a master plan for my life. I was just reading in my Bbile reading how God works all things together for His good and glory. (Romans 8:28) 

We have a ladies meeting at our church this weekend, and I've been frantically trying to get my act together...as usual. :) I'm helping out with the 6-8th graders, and I'm looking forward to it. We've done some pretty crazy games and we always have a lot of fun. However, Roger watches our children! That's a problem since he's not here this year! There is a session on Friday night, and I asked my parents to watch them for Friday afternoon and evening as I need to help decorate and participate in the session. But I don't want to ask my parents to watch them Friday and Saturday, as that's a lot and they already help me out often. However, who wants to take on five additional children for eight hours on Saturday?! I've been praying hard for God to answer my prayers, and God has done just that! A very dear friend of mine mentioned to me that her husband was wanting to take the boys on Saturday to be a blessing to me. Although four boys is fun, it can be overwhelming and exhausting, so it's a huge blessing that someone actually WANTS to take them for the day! My mom has agreed to keep Emma on Saturday, so I think I'll have all the bases covered. I have many, many things to get done before Saturday, but it's such a blessing to know that my kids will be watched and taken care of while I'm not available for them.

So, I also decided what I'm going to do with the gift of money I was given on Sunday. Our church has an overnight ladies retreat every fall. I've had my doubts about being able to go simply because our funds are starting to become limited. But God in His infinite mercy and grace has provided a way for me! (Now all I need is the big miracle of Roger finding a job around here, so I'll still be in the area in November!) 

If there is one thing I've learned in my parenting experiences, it's that children need naps! The more a child whines and cries about how much they "don't" need a nap the greater the need for a nap! One child has been particularly out of sorts today. I'm thinking it probably has to do with daddy leaving again, not enough sleep over the weekend, and too much excitement. This child struggled with school today, and I knew he needed a nap. I came home with the little ones, while my mom finished up school with the other boys. Emma was asleep by the time we reached home, and thankfully she stayed asleep while I carried her in the house. I tucked Travis into our bed, and Wyatt in his own room. Travis was asleep in less than five minutes. Wyatt was hoping I would let him get out of bed...no way, kid! Instead I grabbed my pillow and laid down in his bed with him. He talked with me a bit, told me how much he loved me and daddy, and fell asleep holding my arm...I love these moments! All the kids slept for about 1 1/2 hours, so it was a good chance for me to rest my leg and gather my thoughts for this weekend. My mom brought the boys home after everyone woke up, and serenity disappeared into the abyss of boys with nerf guns, Legos, and choas. You know what though? That's okay! 

Roger and I have to make a few decisions concerning the rest of his ratings. He needs to get his commercial  rating yet, and we are contemplating whether or not he should try to find a place to finish up his ratings up here in Wisconsin. Originally the school in Florida said the average student took 12 to 14 weeks. However, out of the 15 students in Roger's class, he is the one that is the closest to being done and it's been closer to 17 already and he isn't done! (How they arrived at that average number of weeks, I'll never know!)

Anyways, we continue to need your prayers as we seek wisdom and direction. 

Wednesday, September 23, 2014 (aka...crazy day)

No matter how hard I try to plan out my Wednesday and prepare ahead of time, it always seems chaotic and overly full! Since we've started school, that's only added to the craziness. Today was a rough homeschooling day. Travis didn't have four k, so he came along to school, obviously! Usually, Travis and Wyatt are best buddies...not today! Whatever Wyatt was doing for school, Travis wanted to do as well. And Wyatt didn't want Travis doing his school, and Travis was sitting too close to him, and Travis stole my pencil, and Travis is sitting where I want to sit, etcetera. (Can you tell Wyatt needed a nap?!) Emma didn't want to be a school either, and it felt like a three ring circus! At least my dad was able to listen to one of the reading students. It was one of those days where I wondered, "I wonder what sending them to school would be like?" But praise The Lord, we survived it! 

I took the three very grouchy younger children home, and left my dear mother to finish math with the older boys! We went straight home, after we stopped at the pumpkin farm. :) I've been telling the boys that we will get pumpkins, and we drive right past the pumpkin place every day. So today we stopped quickly to pick out two pumpkins. At $1.00 a piece for the big ones, I think it's a pretty good deal. They want to carve the pumpkins. Yeah, that's a daddy job. Knives, small children, and slimy pumpkins does not interest me!

I laid the kids all down for a nap, and it took Travis about two minutes to fall asleep. Wyatt laid in bed quietly, but I don't think he ever fell asleep. :( After the big boys came home, it was lunch time, pick up time, and gather up the items we needed for church and Kings Kids. (It was also "dress like a farmer" night for Kings Kids, so we had to find overalls, plaid shirts, and farmer hats!) 

We left for Oshkosh about 1:30, and we made a quick stop at the YMCA. I got in three miles, picked up coffee for my friend, and headed to drop off my children! My friend, Gretchen, had graciously offered to watch the boys again while I did plasma donating. However, since I'm taking the antibiotic for the staph infection, I can't donate plasma. :(  (The antibiotic is working; but it makes me sleepy and gives me insomnia!) Thankfully, even though I couldn't donate today, Gretchen was willing to watch the kids while I did some errands for our upcoming Ladies Meeting on Saturday. I'm really starting to feel the crunch of time as I'm desperately working to put together games, object lessons, craft materials, and get all my ducks lined up for Saturday!

I had three beautiful, glorious amazing, wonderful hours to myself this afternoon. Even though I ran around like crazy, I was able to go more places in far less time than when I have five small children in tow! I went to Aldis, Target, CVS, Walmart and Office Max. I'm feeling a lot better about having the stuff picked up, now to just get it all together. :) Gretchen and her husband, Sean, even brought the kids with them to church, so I really had an afternoon free! 

I'm working on a power point presentation for the music I want to do with the young girls on Friday night. Unfortunately, technology and I are not friends! I can barely make my iPad do what I want it to do, and I know that it could do so much more; but I need a tutor to teach me! :) However, when we tried the presentation tonight, it actually worked! Amazing! I had only typed one song onto the presentation because I didn't want to waste a bunch of time on something that wasn't working! So, now I'm ready to go back to it! (Hopefully, it will still want to work on Friday!)

Blessings...a date, money, and a message!

Big  blessings!!

Whenever I'm feeling discouraged, I am reminded of how much God loves me. When I stick close to Him, He gives me comfort, peace of mind, and grace for every moment. But sometimes, God chooses to show me how much He loves me through other people! I'm thankful for those who are willing to let God use them to bless us. 

1) On Friday night, Roger was told that his golf outing with the church men was paid for by a friend! This was a totally unexpected surprise and such an encouragement to us! 

2) On Sunday morning, a friend at church came up to Roger. She said that she had a gift for us, and she wanted us to go on a date. She generously gave Roger $50.00 to take me on a date! Yay!

3) Pastor Brenenstuhl preached on not giving up on dreams. He reminded us of Joseph and how God gave him a dream, but it was years before God fulfilled that dream. Roger and I have both been particularly discouraged lately, and this message was exactly what we needed to hear. Thank you, Lord!

4) Following the morning service, a lady came up to me. She said she didn't know why, but God had impressed upon her heart to pray for us on Saturday. She said that God wanted her to give me something, and she was praying for us. I hardly know this lady, I'm not close in age to her, we don't chat, but she was willing to be used of God! She tucked a bill into my hand and gave me a hug. Of course, I was all teary eyed, and I couldn't speak. As I walked away, I looked at the bill she had given me. This dear lady had gifted me with $100.00! I could hardly believe it...wow! Since I don't have a specific plan for it, I'm half expecting the mail man to bring me an unexpected bill this week! :)

What a weekend it was to remember! We had a fabulous weekend, but it went by way too quickly! :( 

Thursday ... I took the three younger children to Milwaukee with me to pick up Roger. By the time we arrived, he had already landed and was waiting for us. But of course, two of the three children needed to use the bathroom, and Emma just wanted out of the car! :) After parking the car, we walked towards  the baggage claim area. We stopped at the first bathroom. :) As we walked toward the baggage claim, we saw Roger looking out the window with his back to us. Wyatt took off running for Roger and practically took him out at the knees! The boys were delighted to have "scared" daddy, and they all wanted to talk about ninety miles an hour! Emma was a little hesitant at first, but she quickly warmed up to daddy. 

We stopped for coffee on the way home, and to let the kids out for a bit. I had called the clinic earlier this morning to see about getting a different medication. The clinic called back and said that I could pick up my changed prescription in Oshkosh. However, when we went to the pharmacy, the prescription wasn't ready. Knowing how anxious Garett and Chandler were to see daddy, I decided I would just come back later and pick it up. We headed to our house first, and Roger stayed with the three younger children, while I went to pick up Garett and Chandler. My kids are not usually anxious to leave my parents house, but those two couldn't get in the car fast enough! :) 

Back home, everyone wanted to talk to daddy, be by daddy, sit by daddy, wrestle with daddy, work with daddy, etc. The boys were determined to soak up every minute! I had a special ladies get together to go to tonight, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to leave our family. But, Roger reminded me that I still needed to pick up that prescription, and that he was home to try to give me a break too. So, I left a little early to pick up the medication, and run a few errands. I can't believe how emotional I've been since Roger is home! I spent a good twenty minutes crying in the car..why? It's such a relief to have the person I trust the most watch our children, to not have to worry about inconveniencing someone, or to wonder if I should pay someone and how much for watching our kids. I haven't really noticed the strain it's been until Roger has been home to relieve that burden. It's like I'm free to release all the emotion, tears, and weariness I've been holding at bay. I'm sure to be a basket case all weekend! 

On Friday, I took the boys to school with me, while Emma stayed home with Roger. She hadn't slept well the night before, so she was sleeping when it was time to leave for school. For whatever reason, she was up screaming from one to three in the morning. She wanted to nurse, but she didn't realize that once she quit nursing, she couldn't go back. 😟 So, I spent some time cuddling her and convincing her to try a cup! Finally, she fell asleep...praise the Lord. But the boys were up early to spend time with Roger. School was hard for everyone and no one wanted to concentrate...but my mom and I decided that the boys would not have school on Monday. 

Roger and Emma came over to the school house after Emma woke up. Roger listened to reading, and then took Wyatt home with him while the older boys finished up school. The boys were more than ready to leave school, and they were very anxious to get back to dad! The boys were more than happy to help when they got home from school. They worked on cleaning out the pool, scrubbing gutters, cleaning the garage, and picking up the yard. We gave them the option to take a nap or help work...they picked working. 😋

We headed into Oshkosh about 3:30 to get the key for the church van. (We had a college activity that night.) The boys and Roger stayed at church while I picked up a few groceries for the Deacon family night on Sunday night. At six pm, we gathered at the church with the college kids. We went to play laser tag up in Appleton. Normally, we don't take our kids with us to college activities as they aren't for them. But since Roger is only home for a few days, we took all the kids with us. Garett was the only one old enough to play laser tag, but the other boys were able to play on the inflatables that were there as well.  It was a super late night for us all, but the kids did pretty well about not falling apart. It was 11:30 by the time we were home and in bed. 

Roger was up early on Saturday to play golf in the Pastors Cup outing at church. While I know that he really wanted to spend time with us, Roger also really needs adult fellowship as much as I do. I'm glad he was able to play, but it was way longer than either of us anticipated it being! Roger was also a little bummed as he had really wanted to spend time with one of his good guy friends at the golf outing, but it just didn't work out. I could tell when he got home that he was kinda frustrated with the way the day went and how long it took. It also meant that there wasn't enough time for me to go out to coffee with a friend, so we were both a tad disappointed. Know what though? Life moves on. 😬

My parents came over for supper, so we had a good visit with them. We are so appreciative of all their help this summer. And guess what? Our lawn mower MiGHT be fixed...I guess we will find out when I cut grass this week! Of course, we only have a few more weeks of grass cutting anyways,  but either way, I'm glad it might be working again. 

I had wanted to go out my myself after my parents left, but since it was already 8 pm, I decided to stay home. Roger and I rented the movie "Mom's Night Out", and we had a good time laughing together. 

Sunday was a day spend with church, cooking, baking, talking, church, Deacon family night, friends, and not much rest! Since Roger has been away, we are kinda "out of the loop" sometimes about what's going on, so we were both thankful that our deacon families were combined with another deacon family. However, we definitely want to help out as much as possible, so I made two pans of brownies, two pans of gluten free brownies, two pans of Rice Krispies, and Roger cut up seven pounds of cheese to serve with crackers. I also made a meal for one of our families in our deacon group, and one for our pastors family, since Heather was sick. Shall I admit it was a busy afternoon?! However, it was a lot of fun too. The kids played nicely while making a huge mess with Legos while Roger and I talked and made food. We had to leave for church by 4:30 so that we could help set up chairs for our deacon families, and I was practicing some music with a ladies group. I'm so thankful for a good church to serve in, families that love God, ladies to fellowship with and accept me for all my failures. 

Roger was up early on Monday morning to meet up with someone from church. I'm thankful for all the people that have supported us, encouraged us, and loved us. I'm especially thankful for those who have recognized that while things are difficult for me, life isn't a walk in the park for Roger either! He desires fellowship with believers just as much as I do, and he needs friends to help encourage him and ask him how is he doing. 

It's going to be a rough day...no one wants to see daddy go back to Florida. I'm thankful it's not for forever. Ever time Roger comes for the weekend, it's a reminder of how blessed I am to have a great man for a husband and a daddy. I'm looking forward to being together again, no matter wherever God may choose to put us. Roger and I both recognize the fact that we are coming to an interesting place in our relationship. Not that I've been hiding things from him, because I haven't, but I also haven't wanted to "unburden" on him when he's 1600 miles away! We both realize that when we are back together as a family for good, it's going to take lots of talking, date nights, and communication to reinforce those ties in our marriage. We both have the need of fellowship, probably me more than him, simply because I like to talk. :) However, Roger has the needs of needing his wife, interacting with his children, and battling of the discouragement attacks of the devil. 

Well, as I predicted, it was a rough day for the kids. We left early to take Roger to the airport, and had a pizza lunch before heading dropping Roger off. The kids wanted to get out of the car for a bit, so we parked, walked Roger to security, and said good bye...again. The boys are getting used to the airport, but these moments are always going to be tough. They did well, with minimal tears, but it was a quiet walk back to the car. 

On the way back to Oshkosh, Travis and Emma took a nap. :) I cancelled my plasma appointment since I'm taking an antibiotic for my infection on my leg. The clinic called me this morning to confirm that it was a staff infection. It's a good thing that they called and told me that, because it's looking a bit better, and I was tempted to quit taking the antibiotics. However, I'd like to keep running, so I'll take the antibiotic! I did decide to go to the YMCA and walk for a bit. I'm learning to quit when my body starts squawking about pain, but I need a little activity. I needed to pick up a few things at Target, so we went there first. While at Target, I told the boys that next we would be going to the YMCA. Chandler asked if we were going home first. I replied, "no, why?" Well, my crazy six year old son had locked a pocket knife to his pants and the key was at home! Why you would do that, I have NO idea! I didn't think it would be a wise idea for him to go to the YMCA with the knife on his pants, so I bought him some pants off the clearance rack at Target. (I love that boy, but he does some crazy things!)

Home again! My leg is now bothering me just a bit, so I'm putting warm compresses on it, and the boys are playing outside. Back to school tomorrow, so it will be an early night! 

New week...crazy start...hives!

Monday, September 15, 2014

School done...check. Plasma donated...check. Kids fed...check. Laundry, outside play, naptime...check, check, check. So, why then can I look around my house and say, "wow, I have so much to do?!" I feel like the day was productive, for the most part, and yet it's time for bed and the house needs attention. Oh well!

Mondays are usually a challenge to get out the door, to school on time, and everyone fed with teeth brushed! However, I'll tell you a secret of mine...my children rarely sleep in pajamas. (I know, it's terrible! :) When I have the kids get ready for bed in the evening, I have them put on the clean clothes that they will wear tomorrow. It saves me so much time and headache  in the morning! Emma sleeps in pajamas, sometimes, because those are warmer than her play clothes. The boys started the habit on their own years ago, when they didn't have very many pairs of pajamas. Now the boys choose to put on the clothes for the next day, and they usually wear pajamas when they aren't feeling well! 

Travis went to school with minimal hesitation today, so I'm delighted at that progress! My dad was able to find time to listen to the boys read, so that saved us a lot of time today. I took Emma and Wyatt with me to pick up milk and Travis. After we got home, I made chili for lunch (and supper). My mom brought the boys home, so I gave her chili for supper too. :) 

Everyone needed quiet time today. The weather was a little dreary, and I think dreary weather makes everyone a tad more crabby! So, I told Garett and Chandler to get in their bed with some books, put Emma in her bed, and took the two little beds to our bed. It didn't take long and the whole house was quiet...ah, blissful! (It ended much too soon!)

I had a plasma appointment this afternoon, so we accomplished that also. However, I'm not sure that I'll be able to donate plasma on Wednesday, since the girl had a hard time finding my vein. I think I'll be ending up with a bruise on that arm, so we will see. However, I did catch up on most of my Bible reading while at plasma, so I feel like I used my time wisely. I am still behind, but not as much as I was before my appointment! :) 

I was planning on trying to go to the YMCA also, but by the time I was done at plasma, my arm was kinda hurting. So instead, we cashed in on our reading program certificates from the library. The boys each had coupons for a kids meal at Hardee's, so we did that and came home. The boys played outside  while the sun was still up, and I got Emma ready for bed. She seemed tired, so she was in bed by seven,...hopefully, she won't be up at four! :)

After I laid Emma down, Chandler came in to ask me to play volleyball with him. (I like volleyball, but I feel like I do a lot of running and waiting for the ball when I play with the boys.) :) However, they all had a good time, we picked up the yard, and came in to get ready for bed.

I did have a "mommy" moment tonight. Chandler went to get clean clothes out of his drawer. However, the clothes smelled like urine! I was like what is that awful smell! Well, someone had wet the bed during the night, and instead of telling mom, this person just shoved the wet underwear into the closest handy thing. Chandlers drawer happened to be open! Mom was not happy! Let's just say that we have one child that will be doing a lot of laundry in the next few days!!

We are looking forward to seeing daddy this weekend. The boys are counting down the sleeps until he gets here. I'm counting down the sleeps until I get to share the bed with Roger instead of a small boy who sleeps the wrong way in the bed! 

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

You know what I'm thankful for today? That God created a time for our bodies to rest and that every day will eventually come to a close!

After teaching Wyatt school this morning, and listening to the older boys read, I headed to my monthly house cleaning job. I wasn't feeling that great today, as I have some sort of weird infection on my leg that is red, painful, and swelling...not fun. However, I did want to get this house cleaning job done today, as my mom was available to watch the kids while I cleaned. :)

I did get most of the house cleaned before it was time to pick up the kids, but I did still have several loads of laundry I needed to get done. So, I put the laundry in my car, picked up the boys, and came home to start laundry. (I'm also thankful for a washing machine!) Emma did take a nap, but by the time we got home, it was a little lat to be laying the boys down for rest time. So, I tried to rest my leg (as much as possible with five children). I finally finished the laundry around six,so we headed back over to the house cleaning job to finish up there. I also remembered that Travis has treats for his class tomorrow at school...so off to walmart for a few items. 

Finally home again, to make supper, make treats for school, Bible time and bed. It doesn't seem like that crazy of a day now that I'm writing it all down, but it definitely was a crazy day! 

Two more sleeps until Roger comes home! We are so excited! I'll be taking Travis, Wyatt and Emma with me to the airport to pick up Roger, while my mom makes sure the older two get in another day of school. :) Actually, Garett and Chandler were not disappointed to find out they weren't going, but they both said it was too long of a ride! :)

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

It was supposed to be a crazy day but it ended up being that way! Travis had treats for school, so I was up at five to get coffee, Bible reading done, and treats made. He brought home made granola bars and apple teeth (apples with peanut butter with mini marshmellows between the slices) For the first time, he was very excited about going to school. :) 

After getting everyone up and rolling, we headed to school. But, we swung by McDonalds after dropping off Travis. Why? Because it's free coffee this week! :)

I've been battling some type of infection on my leg right below my knee. So I spent a good part of the morning teaching with my leg up and warm compresses on it. However, I also made an appointment at the doctors office for 11. I ended up taking Travis with me to the appointment since he was done with school. It was a short appointment, and I was half thinking that the doctor might lance it and drain it; but the last time that happened, I fainted! Instead I was prescribed an antibiotic, and she did a culture swab. 

After the appointment, it was time to pick up the other children and head home for lunch and nap time.  Emma fell asleep in the car on the way home, but she stayed asleep while I brought her in and put her in her own bed. :) The other boys tried to sneak outside before I called them for lunch. :) 

After quiet time, we packed up the Kings kids bag, the stuff we needed for supper, and all the other items we "needed" to bring along. I dropped the kids off at my friend, Gretchen's house, while I ran an errand. When I came back to pick up the boys, they were having a great time playing with their friends. :) And although this would have been the perfect opportunity to pick up the antibiotic...I forgot!

We had supper with the Shuberts again this week, and the boys all adore their daughter, Story. :) It was nice to have some adult company at the dinner table. :)

Time for Kings Kids, so off we went to church. I was reminded that my leg was uncomfortable from all the walking I had done, and the redness was coming back. So, while the kids were at church, I went to pick up the antibiotic. I don't know why I didn't take a pill right then, but it never even crossed my mind! 

Back to church, pick up kids, drive home, bring in sleeping children, fed non sleeping children a snack, put away a few groceries, and took a pill. Thankfully, all the kids were asleep, by the time the pill was having its effects. About twenty minutes after taking it, I had hives all over and I felt like scratching my way out of my skin! I was reminded of when I had an allergic reaction while in labor with Emma...not fun! A call to the doctor, confirmed the fact that I shouldn't take any more pills (yeah, wasn't going too!) I was told to take Benadryl, so I did. I'm hoping the kids feel like sleeping in a little later tomorrow morning, because I'm going to be tired! 

Emma has officially weaned herself. I tried nursing her last night, and she refused. I put her in bed and she laid down without a fuss. While she nursed longer than any of the boys, this is harder than I thought it would be for me. Emma is most likely our last baby (Roger says, "for sure") :) However, I'm just not 100% sure. I enjoyed this year with Emma so much, and it was a lot more fun having a gap between Travis and Emma than having four boys in four years. I don't mind being pregnant (for the most part), God has blessed us with five beautiful children, and I'm just not sure... I guess we will wait and see what God does and continues to do in our family. 

Tomorrow! Tomorrow!! Yay! We are going to get Daddy (aka...my husband!!) We are all so very excited, and looking forward to soaking up lots of time together! :)

Thursday, September 18, 2014

We picked up Roger from the airport...so good bye until later! :)

Friendships

If there is one thing I've really learned this summer, it's how valuable and irreplaceable good friends are in my life. Although many hands have helped me over the last fifteen weeks, I'm thankful for friends who look behind the cheerful smile and upbeat words. Honestly, I don't feel like a hypocrite for smiling and saying the "right" words (at least not most of the time), because who wants to hear a 15 minute dissertation on what I might really be thinking! :) However, I do have a few close friends that really do ask what's going on, how they can pray, and what I'm really thinking. I try not to unload too much, and I do have to be very careful about what I say in front of the boys as I don't want to hurt their feelings or make things rougher for them. Usually, if I'm emotional, they also become emotional and life quickly becomes a basket case scenario! We've survived thus far, so no quitting now!

Saturday, September 13, 2014

Busy, busy day! We left home about 8:15 this morning, and we met up with a friend, Autumn, and her baby, Logan, at church. We all piled (quite literally) into our station wagon, and headed up to Kaukauna to support the Women's assurance Center's walk/run for life. It was a rather chilly morning, but at least it wasn't raining! 

I was a little worried that we weren't going to make it to the park in time for the run/walk, but I needn't have worried as we had plenty of time. I signed up for the race, and asked Autumn to watch my kids. :) Thankfully, my sister in law, Allison, was there too, so she offered to help watch the kids too. There was a fairly good turnout for the event, and I heard that more came this year than last year. The Center had organized a few games for people to play, a pie and chili contest, a bounce house for the kids, a silent auction, and the walk/run. 

At 10:30, the walk/run started. There were fourteen runners with that being males and females, so it wasn't a big race crowd. :) There were about five of us that started out together in the front, and and quickly put some distance between ourselves and the other runners. However, when the trail split, we weren't sure which way to go. :) We ended up picking the wrong direction, which we realized after we had gone about .2 of a mile and ended up at the steps to a baseball field. So we turned around, and then everyone who had followed us turned around as well. However, that meant that I was now not nearly as close to the front! Oh well...extra steps on my fitbit. And since I don't give up easily, I was determined to try to catch back up. So myself and another guy passed everyone back up, and then kept pace to the uphill before the turn around to come back on the trail. We both made it easily up the hill, but all those years of hill training in cross county came back to me. :) I got a good lead on the downhill, and I was determined to try to keep it. :) It was tempting to slow up when I couldn't hear anyone breathing behind me, but again memories of our cross country coach repeating, "never look back, don't slow up" kept resounding in my head. So, I did end up first across the finish line, which is a first for me. I ended up running 3.42 miles instead of the 3.1 race that everyone else ran, but oh well, it was a lot of fun. My favorite part was listening to the boys tell Roger about the race. :) you'd have thought I had won an Olympic medal, they were so proud of me. They are my biggest fans, outside of their daddy, and they are the number one reason I'm fighting to get in shape and stay in shape. (Okay, it's for Roger too!) :)

By the time the race was wrapped up, and the kids had played in the bounce house, Autumn and I decided it was time to go. Emma was looking for a place to lay down, and Logan wasn't far behind. So, we gathered up the kids, and found a few yard sales to stop at on the way back. (We didn't have great success finding any treasures, but it was fun) We stopped for lunch at a McDonalds with a play land, so that made some little people's day! 

After lunch, we stopped at Sams Club for a few things, and of course, the boys ate all the free samples! (They had just finished lunch!) 

By the time we dropped Autumn and Logan off at the church again, it was almost 3:30, and the boys were getting tired. However, I needed some iodine for my object lesson for Children's church. We went to Fleet Farm first, but I didn't want to buy a gallon! I was a little disappointed that I couldn't find it in a small bottle, but we needed to stop at the grocery store before heading home. On a whim, I decided to look in their band aid aisle, and I found a little bottle of iodine. God is so good! 

Home again, home again...yay! The boys dragged stuff out of the garage to play with while I made supper.  My parents came over for dinner, and we had the feast of fresh corn, fresh coleslaw, fresh potatoes, fresh green beans, and chicken sausage. It was delicious home grown food...yum! 

The boys were tuckered out, so it was an early bed time immediately following Bible time. I was able to Face time with Roger so that was really nice. The boys always want to talk to him to, so it's hard to find time that not interrupted. I went to bed early enough, about 10:30, but insomnia followed me to bed. :( It was after 2:30 when I finally fell asleep, which can make for a challenging morning! I was up at 5:50 to make a breakfast dish for the teens at church. Chandler came out of his room about 6:10 and asked if he could help me cook. It always takes three times as long, and about four times the mess, but God graciously filled my mouth with "yes" instead of "no" like my flesh wanted to say! He had a great time cracking eggs and whipping them up, and I have no regrets about spending time with him. 

Sunday, September 14

Oh yeah, it's bedtime! I have a terrible headache, and I was grouchy at the kids tonight. :( I prayed with them, but then didn't kiss them good night. However, my conscience was severed, so I had to go back and kiss them all good night. 

We had a good day...the breakfast was inhaled by the teens, the object lesson worked out beautifully in Children's Church, and I was able to take a little walk and get some laundry folded this afternoon. :) 

I did have one disappointment this morning. Since next Sunday will be Deacon family night after church, I was passing out flyers to those in our deacon group. I happened to be in the church office when I handed a flyer to someone. He asked what it was for, and I replied it was for deacon family night. He replied, "whose my deacon?" I think he was trying to be funny because he laughed after he said it. However, my feelings were a little hurt, actually. This was a person to whom I talk to often, I know Roger has talked with, and while he thought it was a funny comment, no one else in the room knew if he was kidding or not. If there's one thing that puts me on the defensive, it's comments directed at my husband of children. But moving on...it's behind me now. 

After church, I had a quick errand to run at Target. We happened to drive by A&W. Chandler read their sign to me..."99 cent cones". He immediately replies, "Mom, what a rip off!" I was like, "what?!" Chandler states, "who in the world would pay .99 for just a cone?" I couldn't help it...I laughed out loud, and cleared it up for him that they did put ice cream in the cone. :) 

I had such a bad headache this afternoon, that I allowed the boys to watch Curious George while Emma was sleeping. I told them not to get up, and that I was going to lay down for twenty minutes. I felt much better after resting, so I sent the boys outside. After Emma woke up and ate her snack, we went out side for a little walk. We didn't get far, but something is better than nothing. 

Pastor Brenenstuhl preached a good message tonight on balance. I need to hear that. Sometimes, I feel all muddled, and that I don't have good balance. However, it's something to work on...not throwing out the baby with the bath water. :) 

The boys were able to face time with Roger tonight, and tell him all the things that they have planned for this weekend  when he's home. :)

I know Roger is looking forward to being home for a few days, so please pray that he can get done what he needs to before he leaves on Thursday. 

I'm going to bed....good night, all!

Bribery...yeah, I'll admit it!

Tuesday, September 9

I have a confession to make...I bribed my child today! Ahh!! I know, right? We've all seen the parent in the grocery store aisle,  making all sorts of crazy promises to their child if they'll just stop screaming, stop whiny, stop whatever. However, I have a good excuse. :) Travis had a rough day at school yesterday, and as soon as he got up this morning, he asked if it was a school day. I replied that yes, we had school today. Immediately, his eyes welled up with tears, and he gave me a big hug, and said, "but I don't want to go, mommy!" Oh dear, we are only in the second week! Now Travis is on the young side, but I feel like 4k could be a good experience for him, and I definitely don't want to give up too early either. So, all morning, I encouraged him that he would like school, and that he was a big boy, and all the other assurances that moms make to their children. :) But it wasn't working, Travis was not being convinced that he would like school. Oh well, I managed to get all five children in the car. On the way to school, Travis was still having a little bit of a hard time, and kept insisting that he wanted to go with Wyatt. I told him that if his teachers said that he had a better day today, with no tears, we would get a treat after school. However, he had to stop crying. He managed to hold back the tears, but his lower lip was really trembling when I dropped him off. I reminded him that he was a big boy, and that mom always picked him up, and that God would help him. After dropping him off in his classroom, I had this crazy thought to go around to the back of the school and peek in the windows to see how he was doing! (I'm going nuts!) But I remembered that four other children were waiting for me, so I headed to the car. When I got in the car, I asked Garett to pray for Travis that he would have a good day. And then off we went to school with the other boys and Emma.

It was a hard decision for me to leave Travis at school. Honestly, I wouldn't have minded taking him with me to do school with the other boys. However, I was a little worried that if I let him get out of going to school today, it would only get harder. I also want Travis to learn to not quit easily, and that not everything is fun, but we have to stick with somethings. 

School went much faster today for the older three boys, since Papa was available to listen to reading. With three that need to read, it's a huge help to have someone listen to the reading, and it saves my sanity and my moms! Wyatt is breezing along, and showing signs of grasping the blend sounds he is working on. My dad is driving truck tonight, so Wyatt is excited that it is his turn! When I left to pick up Travis, I only ended up taking Emma with me. The other boys were going with Papa to take their metal to the scrap yard. So, I headed to get Travis picked up. I breathed a huge sigh of relief when his teachers both said that he had a much better day....thank you, Lord! Travis walked out to the car, and Immediatly announced, "I did good, mom! Do I get a treat?" I asked him what he wanted for a treat, and he asked for food. :) He was thrilled that he got his own happy meal from McDonald's. (I know it's not all healthy...no judging!) He chatted to me all the way home about school, and that he got to use lots of glue! 

Emma was asleep when we got home, so she went down for a nap. Travis played outside by himself, and he would come in and talk to me from time to time. It was kinda like being on vacation with only having two children! 

The boys arrived home from the scrap yard around 2 and they were bursting at the seams with excitement! They EACH made $15.25 at the scrap yard! I immediately collected up all that money, and put it in their banks. (Now I have to remember to have a discussion on tithing!) 

Our friends, the Longsines, came over around 2 as well. So we fed everyone lunch and sent them outside. :) Beka went back to work on the house some more, so I had nine children at our house for about two hours. :) a Actually, it wasn't too bad...there's safety in numbers, since everyone can usually find someone to get along with! Emma was woken up from her nap by the screen door slamming over and over, so I was a little (a lot!) irritated with that. I told them that they couldn't come in the house anymore. Beka came back and picked up her kids around five, and that's about the time that my dad 

picked up Wyatt. The boys were a little tired, so I had them all go ahead and take baths. After bath time, Travis, Emma and I went for a walk, while the big boys played with Legos. When we got back from our walk, Garett told me he had a surprise for me. (I tend to be a little leary of my children's surprises, as it often tends to be messy!) However, I kept my mouth shut, and I'm glad I did. He had gone through lots of effort to pick up their bedroom, straighten up the closet, and move the dresser. He even remembered to sweep behind the dresser! He had also picked up Emma's room. (Things tend to become a little disorderly with nine kids in the house, and Garett said he knew it would make me happy!) Wow! This mama was impressed! I tried to offer lots and lots of praise...definitely would like a repeat of those actions! :)

We spent the rest of the evening watching a movie together and having popcorn and cheese for supper. (Don't knock it...we had fats from the butter, carbs from the popcorn, and protein from the cheese...and it was delicious!)

Roger needs a miracle. He needs to finish up this instrument training, and we've been praying that it will be done before he comes home next weekend. But, he's having difficulty getting the flight lessons lined up, and the school shuts down on September 11th, so that eliminates one of the days he could fly. Please, please, pray that he can get this done before he comes home next Thursday! For the sake of my sanity, I NEED this phase to be over! (Or pray that I'll be patient!) :)

Wednesday, September 10

It was a too crazy, too full day! Travis was still a little timid about going to school today, but there weren't any tears...thank you, Lord! His teachers said that he seemed to have a great day, and he was happy to talk about his day at school. 

School went by quickly for the older boys as well, since Papa was able to listen to the reading. Wyatt was a little on the grouchy side after being in the truck with Papa all night, but he made it through school. After school, we came home for lunch and a few chores while Emma napped. I decided to take the truck into church tonight so that we could vacuum it out...it rained, so it never did happen! We had to leave home about 12:30, so that I could make my plasma appointment. It wasn't ideal because then no one except Emma got a nap, but that was when plasma had an appointment during the hours that their supervised playroom was open. So I gathered up kids, Kings Kids stuff, the cooler for the groceries, the card to mail to daddy, the clothes for the YMCA, and the hamburgers for supper..whew!

It was a balmy 81 degrees when we left home. However, when we got home tonight after church, it was 51 degrees and everyone was cold! It was kinda a rainy day, but when we left plasma, it was hardly sprinkling. We quickly (well as quickly as quickly is with five kids!) to the grocery store since today is couponing day. (It also makes for a very boring shopping trip for the boys!) But I told the boys that after the grocery store, we would go to Target and everyone could pick out a card to mail to daddy. :)

We went to Target, and the boys all eagerly looked at the cards. I specifically told them that they could only pick out the .99  cards. But Travis and Wyatt don't really read, they just look at pictures! I think we ended up with a sympathy card, a happy birthday card, a bosses day card, and one actual encouragement card. :) Oh well, everyone likes to get mail! 

While Chandler is the saver of the family with his money, Garett really seems to be developing a heart that loves others. He told me that he was going to put $5.00 of the money he got from the scrap metal job in the envelope for his daddy...and my heart melted! :) 

Upon leaving Target, it was raining...of course! So, I told Garett to push the cart, I would carry Emma and everyone else stay close to mom and hurry to the truck! Half way across the parking lot, Travis lost his shoe in a puddle. So he's wailing for mom to help him, and trying to balance on one foot. It wasn't working! He soaked both feet and still didn't have his shoe on. As he bent over to put on his shoe, Garett ran into his backside with the cart! ( we probably looked like an episode out of the three stooges!)  Travis managed to squeeze his foot in his shoe, Emma was wailing because she was cold, and Garett was telling Travis that he shouldn't have stopped in the parking lot! Looking back, it was kinda fun, but I failed to see the humor at the time! 

We did squeeze in a short visit to the YMCA, and then headed to the Shuberts for supper. Yay for adult conversation! We had a great visit with them, but the boys were definitely showing the effects of a long day, no naps, and being cooped up inside for most of a rainy day! (But nothing was broken or destroyed,  and the Shuberts even said we could come back again sometime!) :)

After Kings Kids, it was time to go home. Of course, the house is cold because we left all the windows open when we left. Travis and Wyatt had to be carried in since they fell asleep; and trying to wake them up was like trying to transport jello! Chandler and Garett managed to get their own snack and clean up after themselves, while I carried in groceries and got Emma ready for bed. It seems like just yesterday that I had to help the boys get bowls, spoons, cereal, and milk; but now they do everything themselves! 

Roger and I could use some extra prayers. He's discouraged, I'm discouraged, the kids are needy, etc.   He called this morning to talk for a few minutes before school, and I managed to dump some of the burdens I've been carrying on him. It's not that he doesn't want to hear them, as he does, but he's so far away that I try not to dump everything on him. It was a rather emotional conversation for both of us, and it's hard to convey all that's in your heart in a ten minute conversation before you need to be out the door! Some day we will look back and say, "wow, what a summer!" But for now, it's like "WOW! This is never going to be over!" 

However, I've been reading in Job for my Bible reading, so my problems are like sand compared to all that he had happening in his life! Yet, he blessed The Lord, he remained faithful, he trusted God...and God abundantly blessed Job in return. But, Job couldn't see the future and he didn't know all that God had in store; but he still choose to make right choices. God expects nothing less from me today. 

Thursday, September 11, 2014

Well, school didn't go very good today as the boys were tired from a full day on Wednesday. But that's okay, everyone got to take a nap. :) 

I was invited to play volleyball at the church tonight, but I had no idea how I was going to be able to find someone to watch my kids while I did that. So, I kinda just thought it wouldn't happen after a few attempts to find someone to watch them failed. However,  God decided differently. My dad wanted to take the boys fishing, and then my parents offered to keep the boys overnight. Now all I needed was someone to watch Emma! :) Thankfully, one of my friends, Autumn, agreed to keep Emma for a few hours. Yay! I was going to have a few hours of fun...and I could hardly wait!!

I dropped the boys off for their fishing trip about 4 pm, and I headed to Oshkosh with Emma. I took the truck so that I could vacuum it out and park it for a bit. While I enjoy driving it, it definitely is more expensive to drive! 

Seriously, I feel like Amelia Bedilia sometimes! While I was in the car wash, I decided to scrounge for the dollar that I had lost under my seat (a smarter person would have waited until the vehicle was parked!)  I found the dollar, but managed to get my arm stuck under my chair. I had a moment of panic as I thought I was going to have to lay on the horn to get someone to unstuck my arm! It was painful, and I had to use my other arm to use the lever to push the seat backs so I could squeeze under the steering wheel and unstuck my arm! Yeah, I won't do that again! But the truck is nice and clean and vacuumed out! 

I then went to Target to pick up a few items for our ladies meeting coming up, which of course, took longer than I planned on. I then remembered that I hadn't fed Emma yet, so I ran to the grocery store to pick up some fruit for her. Thankfully, my friend, Autumn fed Emma  too when I dropped her off. I then dropped Emma off at the Hammonds home for a bit, and I headed to church. We had a fun group of people to play volleyball with, and I am so glad that I was able to go. 

It was a later night, but I'm so thankful for my parents taking the boys, and having friends to watch Emma. 

Friday, September 12, 2014

It's Friday! We finished up the last day of school for this week. I could tell that Wyatt was tired when he started crying because he had to write the letter "s" again, and he already did that! The boys were very excited to report that they caught 22 fish on their fishing trip. Although some of them were too little to keep, so they threw them back. :) 

It was a rainy day, so it was a good day for a nap. Actually all the kids fell asleep around the same time, so I was able to do my exercise DVD while they napped. (I could've used a nap too, but I did feel better after working out.) 

It never really did clear up enough for the boys to go outside, so it was a rather long afternoon. I worked on making a pie, and some chili, for an outing we are attending tomorrow. We are going to support the Appleton Women's Assurance center as it's their family day. (The assurance center is a pro-life ministry supported by ours and several other churches in the area.) I'm sure we will have a great time, but I do hope the weather is a little warmer! There will also be a 5k walk/run tomorrow. I was/am planning on running in it, but it's been a while since I've ran! (And there is the small matter of leaving five children unattended while I run!)

Roger had a flight this afternoon, and it didn't go as well as he was hoping for. Please pray for his encouragement, understanding, and a complete grasp of all that he needs to learn. 

Ant Ice Cream Anyone?!

My funny story from the weekend: 

 A couple of weeks ago, when we returned from North Carolina, I noticed ants in our pantry. I cleaned everything out, and after a few days, it seemed like the problem was home. However, yesterday afternoon, Wyatt asked for some ice cream. I scooped him up a bowl, and he asked if we had any "sauce". I replied that I thought there was some in the pantry. So, he poured some on his ice cream by himself. Then Garett and Chandler both asked for ice cream as well. So, I dished it up, and asked if they wanted carmel sauce on it. They said yes, so I poured it on their ice cream. (I'm a mom...I don't look too closely...just eat it!) However, upon closer examination,  Garett realized that the carmel sauce had little floating specs in it. Yeap, it was ants! Gross! So, I dumped out the ice cream, and threw away the sauce. Then I remembered that Wyatt had taken his ice cream outside. So, I called him in and asked where his ice cream bowl was at. He brought it to me...empty! I asked where the ice cream was, to which he replied, "I ate it, mom!" I asked if he had noticed anything in the sauce, and he said "yeah, it looked like it had sprinkles in it!" Oh gross, my child just ate ant enhanced carmel sauce! Oh well, we've seen no ill effects. 

 

Friday, September 5, 2014

Yes, it's quiet here tonight, and it's not because the kids are outside or sleeping. :) A friend from church, who already has four boys, offered to take our four boys for the night! I'm thankful that Star invited us to dinner, sat and visited with me for a bit, and kept the four boys overnight! Travis became a leech when it was time for me to go, and I thought about bringing him home with me. However, Star just hung on to him and told me to go...so I did. I felt kinda bad about leaving him there, but I felt much better after Star told me that he quit crying about 30 seconds after I left. 

The rest of the day has been busy too.  My mother in law and brother in law arrived today from North Carolina. They brought some things up for my brother in laws apartment and a few things for us too. When we arrived home from school, I told Chandler that Grandma had been at our house. He asked me how I knew that. I replied, "well, this laundry wasn't folded when we left for school!" My mother in law, Carla, always helps with laundry when she's here. I do a fairly decent job at keeping the clothes clean, but folding them is not my forte!! Usually, I have at least one basket that needs folding, but honestly, it's probably closer to two or three that need folding! 

The boys had a great time with their uncles, playing nerf gun wars, soccer, and "helping" them unload stuff. :) However, it also meant that naptime didn't happen, so I was a little worried about how the boys would do tonight for the overnight stay at their friends house. Wyatt kept asking me when I was learning, so I guess he'll be fine. We do have some work to do on our table manners. Since we had dinner at their house as well, the boys had the opportunity to sit at the table and practice their manners. I think this was the first meal this summer that they ate with company at the table. (Our table isn't big enough, so usually they eat outside) I don't think they we terrible, but we could do with some polishing up in that area. (I'll add it to the list of things I need to work on!) :) 

Saturday, September 6, 2014

Well, The Lord knew that I needed the other children to be away last night as Emma slept terrible! She somehow woke up from her nap with a runny nose, and I think maybe her ears were hurting last night. She was awake screaming from one to three am., and all I could think about was how thankful I was that the boys were not home! It was a long night, but it would have been much longer if the boys had been awakened from her screaming! She finally fell asleep around 3...in our bed!! She was up at six, so we didn't sleep in at this house! I fed her breakfast, tidied up the house at bit, and then left for Oshkosh. 

I was going to do some shopping for a bridal shower in the afternoon. After vacuuming out the car, I picked up my dear friend, Jenna. It was such a delight to spend most of the day with her! We are such good friends, and yet such polar opposites in a lot of areas! :) We found a gift for the shower, we had lunch together, and went to a friends surprise birthday party. One of our friends was having a surprise 30th birthday party, and it was a lot of fun to be involved in the surprising of her. Autumn has become such a dear friend, and we share lots and lots of laughs. I know it was a rough day for her since she had attended the funeral of a co worker in the morning, but I'm thankful that God allowed her day to be brightened by the party. 

Jenna and I didn't stay long at the surprise party. Next, I picked up the boys from the Carpenters, where they had slept over night. I then went to my parents house to drop off the boys, so I could attend the shower. (I am so glad that most of my days are spent with the boys. I miss them so much when I'm not around them!) It was a quiet ride to my parents house, since the boys were tired! They had a great time with their friends, and is thankful for friends that are willing to have eight boys in the house! :) 

After dropping the boys off at my parents house, Jenna and I headed to the shower. The boys love to go to Nana and Papa's house, and my dad was having a baptismal today. He had filled the baptismal a tank from the old church building and put it in the back yard. The boys thought it made a great swimming pool! :)

The bridal shower was beautiful! It was outside, a gorgeous day, and a great time. Jenna and I didn't stay long since I hadn't spent much time with the boys today, and I wanted to get homes to them. After dropping Jenna off at her home, I headed back to pick up the kids. My mom had fed them supper, given them baths, and the kids were tired! We came home, visited with Grandma for a little bit, had Bible time, snack (we do a lot of eating here!) and bedtime. None of the boys protested about going to bed. :)

Sunday, September 7,2014

I'm so thankful that I'm raising thoughtful children! Emma shared her cold with me, and I really don't feel that great. If Roger was here, I probably would have stayed home. However, I knew if I went to church, at least some one would watch the kids and teach them. :) Since Emma still had a runny nose and contestion, I put her in the nursery to make sure all the others kids could share her germs! I'm kidding!!! I kept Emma with me, of course, which meant I didn't get to hear the service. :( My friend watched her for part of the morning service, since Chandler became a member today. Chandler was very excited about becoming a member, and I'm thankful for his eagerness to love God. He did fairly well about thanking Mrs. Scherzer for the gift, but he did get his hands confused and forgot which hand he was supposed to shake with. :) I'm really wanting to teach the boys to shake hands firmly, look the person in the eye, and be respectful. (I think guys with weak hand shakes need to take hand shaking lessons!!) I did have to fight tears this morning, as I wish Roger could have been here. 

After church, we had lunch with Grandma, Uncle Mark, Aunt Allison, Uncle Dale, and Uncle David. I'm always a little leary of going to lunch after church in Sunday since the kids are tired. Emma fell asleep on the way to the restaurant, but the kids did okay. Wyatt scared himself by choking on his soda, but other than that, it wasn't too bad. :) Emma promptly fell sleep in the truck in the way home, and Travis wasn't far behind. The older three boys talked about the Legos that their uncles had given them all the way home. (Dale and David graciously gave the boys some legos from when they were young). Upon arriving home, Emma did go back to sleep in her bed, but Travis was not convinced. Therefore it was Legos to play with, paperwork for the ladies meeting for me, and no more napping! :(

We left for church early, since I had a meeting to discuss our upcoming ladies meeting at church. The boys didn't mind since they got to play for a bit. :) I missed the evening service as well, since I had kept Emma out of the nursery. The older boys sat with some friends (and their friends parents!) I kept Emma, Wyatt and Travis with me. We worked a little on sitting quietly, and thankfully God provided me with a sweet friend to visit with during the service. (I don't recommend skipping church to fellowship, but God graciously blessed my heart by the encouragement of a friend)

After church, I practiced a special music song with some ladies, and realized that it's been a long time since I've sang! I'm going to have to find time to work on my part! :) But the fellowship was sweet, and we had lots of laughs! 

Roger and I are missing life together. He's been flying late at night, I've not been sleeping well, and it makes both of us more emotional. I'm convinced that the devil uses tiredness as a sure fire way to discourage me! Wyatt exploded into tears this week over missing his daddy, and I know exactly how he feels. (However, when I start crying, it just makes everything harder for the boys.)

Please continue to pray for Roger. He only has a few lessons left before the big test for his instrument rating. We also are praying about a job (I really want to stay where we are...so we need a BIG miracle!)

Please pray that I can catch up on my Bible reading. I've been trying to stay with the church reading schedule on reading through the Bible in a year, but I'm currently about four days behind. I need to catch up but finding time seems to elude me!!!

Monday, September 8, 2014

Today Emma turned thirteen months old. Now where did that time go?! It was a busy day as we started off our fourth week of school. Wyatt finished up a little early, and he got to go with papa to cut grass. He was very excited to go with Papa by himself! I left the older two boys at school with Nana, and Emma and I went to pick up milk, since we always seem to be out! When we picked up Travis from school, he teacher mentioned that he had a rough day. Apparently, he would cry off and on and say that he  missed mommy. :( However, when he got in the truck, he chatted all the way home about school, and he told me he was tired! (Naptime ahead!)

When we got home, my dad was arriving with his lawn mower to cut grass...thanks, Dad! Wyatt and Travis managed to "help" Papa. My mom arrived home with the older boys, and we all had lunch together. Then my dad mentioned that he was going to gather up scrap iron and maybe the boys would want to help! Oh, they immediately headed out to the garage to see what scrap they could find. I had to tell Chandler to go find his own metal...my cookie sheets were not going to the scrap yard!! Oh, and he did! He found some old rusty wheelbarrow that was back in the brush pile, and convinced his brothers to help him drag it out! My dad offered to take the boys along to his house to collect the rest of the scrap. I let the older three boys go, but Travis stayed home for a nap. I know he was tired as he never even protested about it!

I was supposed to have my plasma appointment today, but I was tempted to change it again. However Travis and Emma woke up before it was time to leave for plasma, so I took them along to the appointment. I don't particularly enjoy donating plasma, but I do like the little bit of extra money it provides. :)

After plasma, we headed to my parents to pick up the older boys. My mom said that they ate everything! She cooked up two pans of fried potatoes (from the garden), corn on the cob, apples, cucumbers, and ham and cheese sandwiches! And yes, they still had snack before bed!! I put on a movie for a few minutes for the boys, but they only made it about twenty minutes before I turned it off. Too much arguing, whiny children, and crying Emma did not make for a happy movie experience! Instead we waded through our verses for the Kings Kids program on Wednesday night, prayed, brushed teeth and went to bed...yay!

 Nothing last for forever right? Except eternity...and maybe this summer of separation! I'm tired, I need more sleep, I critized on off the boys for being whiny, and I'm not doing much better at the moment! On the bright side, Roger will be home for the weekend in nine days..."I think I can do it!" :) I'm thankful that God never has a bad attitude, never withholds his Grace from me, and He is always waiting to hear my prayers! 

This is my dad...next to my Roger, he is one of my favorite people. He has been so helpful this summer in cutting grass, taking the boys with him places, helping me keep up with trash, and a gazilllion other things...I'm blessed!